The Chaos Project
by ChaosProjectAuthor
Summary: "This time, things are different. This time, Eggman isn't just conquering, he is ruling. We have more to face than just an army. This time, we don't have an army. It's just us against the entire world. This time, we aren't a Resistance. We're a Rebellion." (Description applies to current season)
1. Series Premiere: Crisis of Chaos Part 1

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Premiere Event**

 **Crisis of Chaos Part 1**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **The eve of Earth's demise—December 30th, 11:00 PM, 0 years B.E.**

 **Somewhere near the Mystic Ruins**

Sonic the Hedgehog sits cross-legged in a dimly-lit room, his eyes closed. The yellow Chaos Emerald sits in front of him. He breathes in through his nose. He breathes out through his mouth. In…and out… His ear twitches. He reaches up to scratch it, then returns to his original pose. In…and out… Suddenly he grunts aloud, "This isn't working! This'll never work!"

Another voice speaks from next to him, "Patience, Controller Sonic. This is not something you can rush." Sitting close to the center of the room is another hedgehog, with yellow fur. He has five spikes around his head, which come out at a slight upward angle, then continue almost straight downwards. He also has his eyes closed, in a meditative stance. "Just close your eyes and focus on your breathing. With the Chaos Emerald here, I'm certain that you can succeed."

"You're right." Sonic closes his eyes again. "Chaos? …How will I know? What will I see?"

The other hedgehog, Chaos, responds, "When it happens, you will know. But what you see cannot be known until you see it. Now, concentrate."

A third, familiar voice grumbles from the other side of the room, "If you two chatterboxes are finished, _some_ of us are trying to _meditate_." Shadow the Hedgehog sits on the opposite side of Chaos from Sonic.

Both Chaos and Sonic ignore him, and return to their own meditation. Sonic breathes in…and out… And in…and out… The Emerald in front of him seems to increase in the intensity of its glow. Sonic breathes again…and again…and again. And as he releases another breath, the sound of it continues, and seems to increase in depth and volume until it surrounds him entirely, like the sound of a raging river. As he opens his eyes, he sees that he seems to be floating in some sort of endless void, the room around him disappeared. As he looks more closely, he can see that the void seems to flow around him. It seems to be composed of some sort of energy, which is white in most places, and black in some others. The light and the darkness flow around each other, constantly changing in size and form. "Where…where am I?" His voice echoes. He begins to float forwards through the void. "This must be what Chaos was talking about. What I'm seeing…must be the flow of Chaos Energy itself." As he progresses, the balance between the light energy and darkness energy continuously changes, though the light always remains in the majority. "What was it that he told me…?" As he thinks back, he has a memory of Chaos speaking to him. _"When you first enter the Flow of Chaos, what you will see will be a representation of your own light and darkness. In time, you may learn to take a wider view, of the energies of others, or of the world."_ "So this is my own energy…and going forward…must be forward in _time!_ " He looks on at the energy around him with renewed interest. As he does, he notices a sudden, almost overwhelming amount of light. But he can barely give a smirk before the light is replaced by almost as much darkness, but again only for an instant. Everything returns to a more balanced state. Undeterred, Sonic picks up speed, and the flowing energy around transforms more rapidly as a result. He starts moving faster and faster, trying to take in as much as he can. But suddenly, everything ends. There seems to be no energy at all, light nor dark, only nothingness. Sonic stops moving, and looks around with concern. "There's nothing here… My own Chaos Energy…I don't have any anymore… Does that mean that this is where I… So soon?" He takes one last look around, but still sees nothing.

Sonic opens his eyes. Even though he felt as if he had floated forwards for miles, he still remains cross-legged in the same dimly-lit room. All is silent. He looks over to Chaos, who appears to be wincing almost as if he were in pain. And his fur turns almost sickly green. "Chaos! What's wrong!?"

Chaos opens his eyes with a start and lets out a pained gasp. He mutters something almost inaudibly.

"What?"

"The Darkness is coming. The Darkness is coming!"

—–—

Shadow the Hedgehog sits cross-legged on the floor of a dimly-lit room, with Chaos to his right. He seems to be in deep focus. But he winces as Sonic suddenly shouts from the other side of the room, "This isn't working! This'll never work!"

Shadow does his best to ignore the response, and renews his focus. He slips into another flashback of himself with his creator. _"Professor…what exactly is Chaos Control?" "Well that's a very interesting question, Shadow. As you can imagine, I have done much research into the nature of Chaos and the Chaos Emeralds, but I've come out with little to show for it. But I can tell you this much: based on my studies, the Energy of Chaos morphs and flows through channels as it moves around the universe—in four dimensions, if my calculations are correct—and the Chaos Emeralds are like…nodes in the great vessel system of Chaos. When you use Chaos Control, you are taken in through such a node, and are instantaneously transferred through a channel to a destination of your choice. Though more difficult and slightly less effective, it is possible to access a channel without the help of a Chaos Emerald. And_ that _is what we'll be working on today…"_ Shadow is pulled out of the memory to the sound of "When it happens, you will know. But what you see cannot be known until you see it. Now, concentrate."

Fed up with being distracted, Shadow grunts through his teeth, "If you two chatterboxes are finished, _some_ of us are trying to _meditate_." The other two ignore him, but return to their meditation. Shadow does the same. _"I just have to concentrate…"_ He begins a series of deep breaths. In…and out… In…and out… Just as with Sonic, his outward breath grows in depth and volume until it resembles the sound of moving water all around him. He looks around with moderate curiosity. His surrounding's also appear much like Sonic's. All around, energy of light and darkness morphs and flows. But unlike Sonic's, the movement of these energies appears completely erratic and random, the light and darkness constantly overtaking each other completely unpredictably. "This must be…my Chaos Energy…" He begins traveling forwards. As he does, random brief spikes in light and darkness can be seen, returning to a balanced state just as quickly. However, as time goes on, the midpoint gains more and more darkness, and the spikes of light become fewer and farther between. Shadow seems to be somewhat concerned by this. Then all at once, the light and darkness energies seem to separate, one on each side of him, as the light grows large enough to equal and parallel the darkness. Then, the light begins to forcefully push against the darkness, enough that nearly the entire void seems to be filled with a blinding light. Shadow gazes upon the light in awe. "So much light…this can only mean that I'm…happy." And then…he smiles.

Shadow is pulled out of the vision and back into the dim room, still smiling. As he opens his eyes, he wipes the smile from his face, looking around in slight panic to ensure that no one saw. The others are still meditating. But then, Chaos begins to shudder, as his fur turns green. Sonic, now awake, shouts, "Chaos! What's wrong!?"

Chaos opens his eyes with a start and lets out a pained gasp. He mutters something almost inaudibly.

"What?"

"The Darkness is coming. The Darkness is coming!"

—–—

"Now, concentrate." Chaos turns back to resume his own meditation.

From his side, Shadow grumbles "If you two chatterboxes are finished, _some_ of us are trying to _meditate_." Chaos ignores him. Just as he's instructed, he begins his own deep breathing. Within a single breath the world around him begins to dissolve to the sound of flowing Chaos Energy. Chaos' void is a sea of calm. Perfectly even amounts of light and darkness swirl around each other in a slow, rhythmic fashion. Rather than proceed forwards, he begins to float upwards, and his own energy recedes away beneath him. As he rises farther, his part of the greater whole becomes more evident, the center of a vast ocean of indiscernible grey. "The Chaos Energy…of the entire world… Now show me the world's future…" Ever so slowly, Chaos begins to drift forwards. As he does, he notices something strange. Far down below him, a patch of grey begins to turn darker. The darkness thickens and spreads, as if corrupting all of the light in the world. Within moments, the sea of grey has become a sea of darkness. Chaos glares at it in horror, his fur turning green in fear. "This event…it was not meant to happen. Or else it would already have been there. But it has just formed. Something has changed… I must warn the others."

"Chaos! What's wrong!?" Chaos is torn away from the horrific sight.

He opens his eyes with a start and lets out a pained gasp. He mutters almost inaudibly, " _The Darkness…_ "

"What?"

"The Darkness is coming. The Darkness is coming!"

Shadow demands, "What do you mean!? What Darkness!?"

"A catastrophe, the likes of which the world has not seen in millennia! The world will be consumed in Darkness within days if we do nothing!"

Sonic resolutely stands. "Then let's do something!"

Chaos and Shadow stand as well. Chaos thinks on what he saw for another moment, and his fur begins to turn yellow. "We should split up. I can't confirm a relevant location yet. I must meditate on this further. Somewhere that Chaos Energy flows abundantly."

"In the Mystic Ruins, not too far from here, there's an ancient Echidna shrine. That should do for your meditation. As for me…when it comes to catastrophe, you don't need more than one guess on who I suspect. I'm going after Eggman, with Tails' help."

"Very good. I'll go to the Mystic Ruins, then. And Shadow?"

Shadow responds, "The Doctor may try, but I don't think it's very likely that he can successfully end the world. I have someone else in mind. It doesn't surprise me that he would be back to full health by now. I'm going to track him down."

Chaos nods. "Then it's settled. Shadow…you should take the Emerald. I don't need it, and I believe that Sonic can make do without it." Shadow nods and picks up the Chaos Emerald from the floor. "With any luck, we will end this before it can begin." He pulls out two small earpiece radios, and hands one to each of them. "We should stay in contact. I wish you both the best of luck."

They each fasten on a radio. As Sonic finishes, he puts a hand on Chaos' shoulder. "Chaos…thank you. For everything you've done for me. For us." He glances over at Shadow for a moment. "You've helped us find our way. That's something…we can never repay."

This time, his fur begins to turn purple. "I do not need your gratitude. It was my duty to serve you from the very beginning." Now it turns light blue. "And Shadow…you have taught me something. You have redefined what I believe is possible. It was my absolute pleasure to teach you." Slightly embarrassed, Shadow grunts in affirmation. Chaos' fur now returns to yellow. "Now, we have work to do. Let's get on with it!" At that, he turns and runs out of the building, with an unnaturally high speed.

Outside, it is cold and dark. Storm clouds loom in the sky. Behind the building is a series of high cliffs, with a few cave openings visible, and one noticeable waterfall. In front of Chaos is the open sea, with an elevated subway platform stretching above the shore. Chaos runs off to the left, towards the jungle.

—–—

Sonic is about to run out after Chaos, but Shadow stops him. "Sonic…when I was meditating, I successfully entered the Flow of Chaos. And I saw–"

"I saw something too, Shadow. But we can talk about it later, we have to get this done first." Shadow is about to say something, but he stops as Sonic runs out, even faster than Chaos did. He sighs and shakes his head, then skates out after the other two.

—–—

 **Hidden Base, Eggmanland**

Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik carefully steps forward across the metal floor. At a distance in front of him, Shadow the Hedgehog appears to be staring at a collage of digital screens spread across the large wall in front of him. Some of the screens show moving videos while others show still images, but nothing on the screens can be properly made out from this distance and angle. Eggman takes another step.

As the hedgehog suddenly turns to face Eggman, it becomes clear that he is definitely not Shadow. "Chaos Frost!" As the hedgehog shouts and lifts the white Chaos Emerald above his head, the air around him seems to condense into a swarm of pointed ice shards. With a wave of his hand, the shards fly forward at high speed, straight towards Eggman, who flinches and moves to protect his face. But nothing happens.

Eggman slowly opens his eyes and moves his arms away, and sees that the deadly ice shards are hovering inches from his face. "It's very rude to sneak up on someone, you know." The hedgehog steps towards Eggman, into more adequate light. Though his shape seems much like Shadow's, his appearance is quite different. His fur is primarily a silvery white, with streaks of green in his spikes. His eyes are yellow, his gloves are turquoise-blue, and his socks and the cuffs of his gloves are red. His shoes, appearing similar to Shadow's, are purple on the top, with a dark blue trim. He admires his Emerald for a moment. "You know, there's something I've always liked about ice. Something destructive like fire is nice and all, but ice is so…pure. So clean. So perfect. And so precise and deadly." He smiles. "Like me. I really should just kill you right now. It would be so easy…" He shakes his head, and smiles. "…too easy. So tell me, Doctor, why did you come out all this way, just to see little old me? I do hope I haven't offended you or ruined your plan or something. That would be just terrible." Eggman doesn't respond, still transfixed by the deadly ice in front of him. The hedgehog gives a slight gasp as he realizes why. "Whoops! My bad." He clenches his free hand into a fist, and the ice instantly dissolves into a fine mist. "Now, you were saying?"

Eggman gets up and brushes himself off. He clears his throat, then begins, "Quite simply, Blacklight, I am here to make a deal."

The hedgehog, Blacklight, responds "A deal, hmm? In case you've forgotten, that didn't go too well for you last time. In fact, I believe I ended up removing your territorial foothold here at Eggmanland, did I not? I suppose that legally makes you a trespasser. Unless you have a passport, per chance?"

Ignoring the joke, Eggman continues, "I am perfectly aware of how last time went. But I know how you work. Last time, you believed that you were better off on your own, that all of your opponents would be weak fools. You know better now. And more importantly, I have much more to offer this time than merely my insignificant robots."

"Is that so? You're hardly piquing my interest here."

"I've been working on something, something world-changing. I call it: 'The Chaos Project.'"

"So now you're messing with forces that you don't understand. You know what? …I like the sound of that. Go on."

"What if I told you that I could take each Chaos Emerald, and multiply its power output by a factor of ten? Especially considering that I have five of them."

"Five Chaos Emeralds…plus my one… The power of 60 Chaos Emeralds…you could power an army for decades with that kind of energy."

"Or, power a much greater transformation for days."

Blacklight marvels at the thought. "So that's what you want me for? My Emerald and my services as an ultra-powerful deity?"

"Oh, so much more than that. You would serve as the General of my robot army, you would lead attacks to conquer the world, and when all is done, you and I would rule over the entire planet. Or maybe you wouldn't want to share any power; you could have a continent all to yourself—you could have two for all I care, so long as our governments remain at peace. Far better than this dingy island. And of course, you could get the one thing that you've always wanted."

"I…I could destroy Shadow the Hedgehog…once and for all…" He starts at a low chuckle, which grows in strength into a full on evil laugh. As he laughs, the screens behind him can finally be seen. Each one shows a different picture or video of Shadow the Hedgehog.

"So we have a deal then?"

Blacklight stops laughing and takes on a very serious face. "A deal? No, of course not. I need proof of a claim like this."

"Ah, very well," Eggman grumbles. "I'm sure you know exactly where my base is."

Blacklight feigns innocent surprise. "Me? Well, you are quite perceptive, Doctor. It's disgusting." He lifts his Emerald into the air. "Chaos Control!" Blacklight and Eggman are both warped from the room. On one of the screens behind where Blacklight used to stand, Shadow sits cross-legged in a dimly-lit room, meditating.

 **To be Continued…**

* * *

 **For these sudden and confusing new characters, you can visit SonicChaosProject{dot}wordpress{dot}com to see images of them for yourself. I highly suggest that you visit the website, not just for pictures to help you visualize the series, but for all sorts of other news, behind-the-scenes details and reviews, and other exclusive information. You could also look up something along the lines of "sonic chaos project wordpress," but you can't be any less specific than that if you want to find it. Hope to see you there!**

 **In other news, thank you all for reading the first chapter of my first FanFiction. I'm sure you've noticed a few things that may be a bit confusing. For your reference, this episode takes place about two years after the current events of the Sonic the Hedgehog game series. As for what happened during that time, it will all be explained through the course of "Season 0" which will come immediately after this premiere is finished. Once Season 0 is finished, we will return to what comes after this premiere, beginning Season 1. Watch for episodes on Saturdays every few weeks.  
**

 **Lastly, I humbly ask of you that you _please_ be vocal with me. As a new writer, the _only_ way I can get better, and make this a more enjoyable story for you to read, is through your feedback. Be it something you'd like to see more of, thoughts on future concepts to be explored, or honest constructive criticism, anything that I have to improve on is something that I can only learn through your reviews, PMs, and emails. I'll always try to respond to you as quickly and as thoroughly as possible, and I could benefit even more from such a discussion.**


	2. Series Premiere: Crisis of Chaos Part 2

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Premiere Event**

 **Crisis of Chaos Part 2**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **The dawn of Earth's demise—December 31st, 6:00 AM, 0 years B.E.**

 **Eggman's Hidden Base, Location Unknown**

Eggman and Blacklight stroll across a raised metal walkway, in a dim hangar bay of some sort. "So, Blacklight, was the demonstration to your liking?"

"Eh, it was alright. I was expecting more." Eggman gives a sudden concerned, surprised look. "Chill out, I'm just kidding." He relaxes, and they resume walking. "With that much power, I'll be happy to lead your forces. Which, I believe, is why you've brought me down here?"

"Indeed it is. I believe we've walked far enough for a good view." They stop, and Eggman pulls out a small device. He presses a button, and the sound of three massive and powerful light sources can be heard powering on as the room lights up. "Feast your eyes, on my three greatest creations!"

Blacklight gasps in awe at the newly-illuminated machines. He has to look all the way from one side of the hangar to the other to get a good look at them all. "I recognize the middle one…are the other two also important?"

"I see that you've been doing your research on Shadow. The other two…well, I suppose it's not important. But if you'll look closely, you'll see that there is also an army at their…feet. The largest army I've ever created!" Just as he says, the floor of the massive hangar is covered wall-to-wall with Egg Pawns, Badniks, and other small robots. The larger ones still cannot be seen.

"With this much power, the world will be m–" he cuts himself off. "The world will be ours."

—–—

 **The Laboratory, Outside the Mystic Ruins**

Miles "Tails" Prower lies asleep in bed. Outside, the first light of sunrise can barely be seen. A door can be heard opening and closing again. A hand reaches out and begins shaking Tails' shoulder. "Hey, Tails! Wake up!"

Tails turns over and moves his shoulder out of the way, muttering, "Five more minutes…you know I don't need to go to school…"

Sonic takes a step back and thinks for a moment. He smirks. "Tails, the _Tornado_ 's on fire!"

Tails perks upright and leaps out of bed. "What!? How!? Why didn't the fire safety systems work!? I've gotta–"

"Tails, there's no fire. I need your help."

"Okay, uh…" He looks out the window and notes the early hour. Scratching his head, he continues, "…what's going on?"

"We think Eggman's up to something. We need to find him, and stop him before he can ruin anything."

"And that can't have waited until morning?"

"Not this time."

"Alright…just follow me." Tails shuffles over to a wall, and pulls down a lever. In the center of the room, a piece of the floor begins to slide backwards, revealing a descending stairway. He starts heading down the stairs, and again motions for Sonic to follow.

The lower floor is quite large, but dimly-lit. Tails pulls another lever, and a series of overhead lights power on, revealing a laboratory filled with all sorts of machines, computers, and spare parts. Tails walks right up to one of the the computers, while Sonic takes a look around, impressed. He gives a whistle. "Looks like you've made some upgrades since last time I was down here."

"Yeah. Things've been getting pretty dangerous lately, so I've gotten a lot more dedicated to my work here." He seems to be mostly awake now. "So, we're looking for Eggman…" As Tails works, a series of files and images come up on the screen. "I can tell that he's been covering his tracks recently. He's doing something that he doesn't want us to know about, but I suppose that isn't that unusual. But…I do have one major clue." Another file comes up, a picture of a large aircraft. "I was able to hack into the security systems at Eggmanland, now under new ownership as you know, late last night. All I managed to retrieve was this image of an Eggman-style aircraft parked there. And it's gone now."

"Do you think you can track it?"

"It's nothing on the level of the Egg Carrier, but it's big enough that it should be noticeable on a scanner if you know what you're looking for. In fact, it hardly seems big enough to run any serious plan. I think it's pretty likely that it's just a means of transportation to his real base. But either way, it will lead us to him."

"No…it's not his whole base. You're right." He goes deep into thought as Tails continues working.

"Sonic? I thought I should tell you…all of the Chaos Emeralds are accounted for. There's your one, and I can confirm that Eggman has at least four, but I'm pretty sure he has a fifth too. And then Blacklight has the seventh. If we ever need more…there's not much we can do…except for–" The computer beeps loudly. "That's it! We've got a location. Let's see here…yep, it's moving slowly, pretty close to Station Square. We can get there right around when it'll be over the harbor." He points towards a door on the other side of the room. "Shall we?"

Sonic runs into the next room, and Tails follows. Inside, a long runway stretches into the distance, and at the start is what can only be the _Tornado._ However, its appearance is quite different. It's slightly larger in size, fitting multiple seats. Regardless of this, Sonic hops onto one of the wings, which are now angled slightly backwards, with a separate engine underneath the inside of each one. The front is more pointed in shape, and no longer has a propeller. Tails climbs into the front seat. Both seem to be quite familiar with this new design.

Tails is about to start up the engines, but he stops. "Sonic…is there something you aren't telling me?"

"Not telling you? Why would I hide anything? Eggman is up to something, and we have to stop him. Just like always."

"Alright…" Tails rubs his eyes one last time, and puts on a pair of goggles.

Sonic reaches up and taps the communicator in his ear. "Shadow, Chaos, this is Sonic. I've located Eggman, and I'm in pursuit." The engines of the _Tornado_ roar. The voice of Chaos calls back, "Understood."

Tails looks up and notices Sonic's radio. He pulls out one of his own, and attaches it to his ear. He shouts over the engine, "What frequency are you on!?"

"Channel 25!"

"Got it!" He adjusts it to match. "Now we can stay in touch if we get separated!"

"Alright! Let's get this show on the road!" Tails nods and presses a button. Far in front of them, a hatch opens, revealing the blinding orange glare of sunrise. Taking the controls firmly, the plane begins to roll forward, picking up speed as it does. By the time it reaches the end of the runway, the _Tornado_ moves at an incredible velocity, and lifts off the ground entirely just before exiting the open hatch, shooting straight out of the cliff on which the laboratory was built, and revealing the open sea below.

—–—

 **Blacklight's Hidden Base, Eggmanland**

Shadow the Hedgehog appears to be staring at a collage of digital screens spread across the large wall in front of him. A set of footsteps can be heard approaching from behind him. Their source speaks, "My, my. Eggmanland seems to be quite a popular place these days. Maybe I should open a theme park! Oh, wait…"

Shadow steps away from the wall to face the approaching Blacklight. He points back to the screens. "I wish I could say that I'm surprised. But for you…I should've guessed."

"Speaking of Eggmanland, I've been thinking that I should probably change the name, since I own it and all. I was thinking something sweet and simple, maybe…'Blacklitia'. But I'm not _that_ vain. Do you have any suggestions?"

Neither seems to be listening very intently to the other. Shadow now points specifically at the screen showing himself meditating several hours ago. "Since you've been spying on me, I assume you know why I'm here. So let's not waste any more time. What are you planning?"

"No? Nothing at all? I grow irritated at your lack of creativity. This is the second time, you know. Though, I suppose that turned out pretty well for me last time. I've changed my mind, I don't want your help anymore. But I'll be sure to tell you when I–"  
"If you're trying to test my patience, it's working."

"Oh, Shadow, always in a rush, always something to do. Just like that blue friend of yours, uh… What was his name again? Speedy or something." Shadow glares at him. "Right, you wanted to know…something."

"Your plan. And you should make it quick."

"Oh, is that all?" He gives a big smile. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that. You see, there's a big change coming. The world's about to be under new management, and I'll be the one responsible. Consider this a formal invitation. Join me, and together we can rule the world, the two most powerful beings alive, side-by-side."

"We've been through this before. I'll never join you. I made a promise…" Meanwhile, the radio in his ear buzzes. "Shadow, Chaos, this is Sonic. I've located Eggman, and I'm in pursuit." The voice of Chaos responds, "Understood." Shadow ignores them.

Blacklight continues, "That's because you haven't heard my latest offer yet. I need you to think for just a moment. Mere hours ago, I destroyed a small mountain with the flick of a finger. And that was just a test. Imagine having that kind of power. Forget being godlike, you would _be_ a god. You could save and purify all of humanity in a matter of minutes, make a better future for all of them, just like you promised. Or, you could wait here, and let your precious Westopolis City be destroyed."

"What!?"

"Oh! Oh, I forgot to tell you! My bad. You see, there may or may not have been a massive robot let loose on the city a couple of minutes ago. Several cities, in fact. Maybe."

"Da–" Shadow immediately stops the profane outburst and resumes a more calm demeanor. "You're despicable. One of these days, you'll get what's coming to you." He lifts his Chaos Emerald.

"Hey, before you leave, you should call me later." He taps just below his ear, indicating the communicator that Shadow is wearing. "The offer stands for as long as one of us hasn't killed the other."

Shadow pays him no further heed. "Chaos Control!"

Blacklight stands there in silence for a few more moments. "I really hate that guy."

—–—

 **Temple of the Lost World, Mystic Ruins**

Chaos sits down in the core of ruined Temple of the Lost World, constructed by the Echidna race so long ago. His fur is white once more. "The Controller was correct. Chaos Energy indeed flows abundantly here." He takes a meditative stance. "Lords of Chaos…guide my Mind's Eye…teach me of that which has yet to come…" All around him, the world seems to swirl away into nothingness. The vision gives way to an intense torrent of Darkness Energy, encompassing all. And then a chorus of countless synchronized voices sound in his head, _"The Darkness is coming…"_ For a moment, his fur turns a light turquoise blue, then returns to white. "I am aware. But for the sake of Balance, I must know more." The vision seems to focus around a particular point, forming a clear city skyline as it grows sharper. The city is completely flooded. "This is the past, is it not?" The voices respond, _"No…"_ The scene again changes, showing yet another city, this one in utter ruins, with collapsed skyscrapers, upturned roads, and bottomless fissures, the sky colored an eerie red. "Another image of the future." _"Yes…but the point of origin, from which the future will most certainly diverge…will be here…"_ Once more the vision fades and reforms, into a post-apocalyptic city of the future, complete with ruined technology and wrecked tire-less cars. His fur now seems to fringe on a green color. "Grand Metropolis City. The fate of the world will be decided at Grand Metropolis City." _"Chaos…the future is not yet written…but some things are unavoidable… The Darkness will come…it can no longer be stopped…"_ Chaos nods. "I understand. But what must I do to allow restoration of Balance as quickly as possible?" _"When the time comes…you will return to us…permanently… It must be done for the survival of the Controller, as well as the Outlier…"_ He seems surprised. "The Outlier? He is truly so important?" _"Your judgement was sound…your training has placed his significance in the Universal Scheme higher than any might have guessed…he will be vital to the restoration of Balance… And something else…you mustn't tell the Controller…or the Outlier."_ Now he seems confused. "I can't tell them? Why not?" _"Given the chance to save you…they will…unless they remain unsure…"_ He remains silent for a moment. His fur begins to turn purple. "Thank you, wise ones. I am certain that your knowledge shall save this world." _"No…it is you who shall save your world… We understand your grown fondness…but we await your return… With your bravery, we will be complete once more…"_

The vision is torn away, and Chaos solemnly opens his eyes, his fur a dark blue. A single tear drops to the floor. His radio buzzes, "Shadow, Chaos, this is Sonic. I've located Eggman, and I'm in pursuit." Chaos, taking a moment to regain his composure and return to his white fur, responds, "Understood."

He sits in silence for another moment. Without activating his radio, he says slowly, "Sonic…I'm sorry that I could not complete your training. I have failed you. I only hope that you can see it in your heart…to forgive me for deceiving you." He waits for another moment, but then does tap the communicator. "This is Chaos. I have determined that Grand Metropolis City will be a location of extreme importance. I need both of you to meet me there as soon as possible."

—–—

Tails shouts, "Sorry Chaos, but that's going to be a bit of a problem!" He send the _Tornado_ into a swift outwards spiral, out of the way of a series of laser blasts. Dark, foreboding clouds conceal the sky all around. "Miles!? What's wrong, where's Sonic?"

Sonic lands in a crouch back onto the wing. A flaming wreck of a robot falls out of the sky behind him, and explodes just after it passes the level of the plane. The shockwave does no more than ruffle his spikes. "I'm fine. Tails has his own radio. But we're a bit occupied."

Tails does another barrel roll out of the way of more fire, and then fires back a few lasers of his own. Three more flaming wrecks fall out of the sky. Tails cheers, "Got 'em!"

"Great job, Tails! But don't get cocky!" Over the radio, Shadow comments, "I'm busy as well. How much time do we have?" Chaos responds to both of them, "Take as much time as you think you need. Just get here immediately afterward. It's important." Sonic and Shadow say at the same time, "Understood." Sonic turns back to Tails. "They've stopped firing. How close are we?"

"We'll breach the top of the cloud layer in a minute. We should be able to see it as soon as we're up there. So…maybe we already beat all the robots? He didn't have many since he wasn't expecting to be attacked?"

Sonic shakes his head. "I've got a bad feeling about this…" The clouds grow lighter all around them.

"Almost there…almost there…" All at once, the mist around them gives way to open sky, revealing a horde of _E-2000_ Transforming Robots surrounding them on all sides, their massive laser cannons all trained on them. "It's a trap! Luckily, I came prepared! Sonic, cover your ears! Particle Beam Cannon, fire!" As Sonic follows his instruction, the plane begins releasing a series of massive blue energy shockwaves, decimating the powerful robots around them.

Sonic seems impressed. "Nice weapon."

"I…may have borrowed some G.U.N. technology." Then, all of the lights in Tails' cockpit begin to flicker out. "Uh-oh!" He starts frantically working at the controls, but there doesn't seem to be any response. Just ahead of and slightly below them lies the same ship seen on the earlier security footage. "The cannon took up too much energy! Brace yourself for a rough landing!" He yanks up on the control yoke, keeping the _Tornado's_ angle as straight as possible for the descent. Within moments, it lies just a few feet above Eggman's ship. He tries one last time at the controls, to no avail. The plane shudders violently as it begins to skid across the top of the ship. It finally comes to a stop a short distance from the front.

Sonic, unharmed, hops out to take a look. The bottom half of the plane has been ripped to shreds. A trail of singed metal was created in their wake. Sonic gives a low whistle.

Tails has gotten out as well. He says nothing, but hangs his head in sorrow.

"Don't worry. I'm sure we can fix it up later. But right now, we've got an egg to crack!"

"Right!"

—–—

Eggman stands alone in a small hangar. He appears to be impatient. Behind him sits an odd machine, long in shape. Three spike structures come out of the top towards the back. Long cables stick out of the far back. It hardly even looks like it's meant to stand up on its own.

Sonic bursts through the roof and lands on the floor right in front of Eggman. "Give it up, Eggman. It's over." Tails flutters in after him.

"Over? Well, I suppose we can agree on something then. You've been so busy chasing me, I'm sure you haven't even realized what's going on."

Tails demands, "What are you talking about!?"

"Oh, my poor Tails. I thought you were smarter than this. You can't even recognize a diversion when you see one? As we speak, every major city in the world is under attack. Well, every city except for one." He points straight downwards. "The invasion has already begun. But I would like to cut you a deal, Sonic." He pulls out a small device. "Surrender yourself and your one measly Chaos Emerald to me, and I will enter the code to deactivate every last robot I control. And the fine citizens of Station Square will never have to meet my friend here." He pats the large machine behind him. "And I'm not talking for now. I'm talking for good. No more robots. Ever. And all you have to do is stay here for a few days, maybe a week or two, and then you'll be free to return to your friends. Just think about the millions, maybe billions of people who won't get hurt if you make the right decision. It's an offer you can't refuse." Sonic stares curiously at the strange machine, as if recognizing it somehow. Eggman looks in the same direction. "You know, I am quite fond of this one."

"And why is that?"

"Hmm… Well, to begin with, I couldn't have possibly made it without the help of my grandfather. It's almost as if this connects us. But, more importantly, it plays off of your weakness. And I didn't even have to come up with it! But enough chatter. We were having a discussion."

Sonic says nothing for a moment. Tails shouts, "Come on, Sonic! You can't actually be thinking about this, can you?"

"Stay out of it, fox! This is between Sonic and I." He turns back to Sonic. "Well then? What is your answer?"

Sonic remains silent a moment more. "…I don't know what it is that you're planning. I don't know what you want me for. What I do know is that you've never once kept your word to me. If you expect me to bargain with you after making a reputation like that…then you really are as dumb as you look! Tails, grab that remote!" As Tails makes a grab for the device that Eggman holds, Sonic runs around the strange machine, looking for some sort of weak point.

Before Tails can ever reach his goal, Eggman says, "Very well then," and presses a single key. The floor instantly parts open beneath the machine, and it plummets back towards earth.

Sonic shouts " _No!_ " Without hesitation, he dives straight into the opening after it.

"Sonic!" Tails dives out after him.

Eggman shakes his head in disapproval, and presses another button to close the hatch. He takes out a communicator. "Orbot, Cubot, set our course back to base. The Hedgehog has been taken care of." A voice responds briefly, "Yes, Sir."

 **To be Continued…**


	3. Series Premiere: Crisis of Chaos Part 3

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Premiere Event**

 **Crisis of Chaos Part 3**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **December 31st, 11:00 AM, 0 years B.E.**

 **Westopolis City**

 **E-4X: BLACKDEVIL**

"I'm busy as well. How much time do we have?" While speaking through his radio, Shadow the Hedgehog walks slowly forward through the once-more ruined city of Westopolis. _"After all the time I spent…after all the work I did. And Eggman ruins it in a day. I should have killed him when I had the chance. But of all the tools he could have done it with…it had to be this, didn't it?"_ He looks up towards a massive pile rubble, made mostly of destroyed buildings. On the top sits a two-headed mechanical monstrosity, with long, clawed arms, and even longer wings, black and red in color. A robot form of Devil Doom. Its singular eye glares at Shadow with ferocity.

Chaos responds to Shadow's question, "Take as much time as you think you need. Just get here immediately afterward. It's important."

Shadow confirms, "Understood." Ignoring the horrific robot, Shadow begins looking around at the streets. _"Looks like all the people have been evacuated…all the people who were left. Good to see that G.U.N. isn't being completely incompetent this time. That just means that I don't have to worry about collateral damage."_ He looks back up to the Blackdevil. "Did they expect me to be scared of you? Tch. Shows how much attention they've been paying. I'm stronger now than I ever have been, more than enough to beat a cheap copy like you. Even with only one Emerald."

It lets out a mechanical roar. Shadow shakes his head. "Let's get this over with!" He pulls out the yellow Emerald. He begins charging an orb of yellow light in his hand. "Chaos…" The robot roars once more, and releases a swarm of mechanical orbs which begin to rotate around it. "…Spear!" Shadow unleashes his attack, and it shoots towards Blackdevil, trailing light behind it. Some of the orbs move to intercept it, but Shadow waves his hand around dramatically, causing the attack to change its direction suddenly, several times. As it passes the last of the orbs, Blackdevil brings in one of its massive mechanical wings to shield itself. Shadow does nothing but smirk. The Spear impacts the wing, and simply stays there for a moment. Then it explodes, shredding the wing and knocking back the robot.

It looks at Shadow for another moment, then the eye rolls back into the head. _"Well, Eggman certainly pays attention to detail…"_ He skates off in order to circle around to the other head, where the eye now lies. As he does, the orbs begin to shoot a hailstorm of thin lasers at him, which he easily evades as he moves. One of the orbs flies straight towards him, but he hops onto it, and from there onto another. He skillfully hops from orb to orb finally getting close enough to deliver an attack straight to the eye. He lands in a crouch on top of a mostly-intact building, at about the level of the eye. For a moment, all attacks cease.

Shadow and the Blackdevil stare eachother down. And then the Blackdevil's wing begins to regenerate. "What!?" Within moments, the wing is whole once more. Before Shadow even has a chance to react, it releases a stream of fire from its mouth, directed straight at him. He leaps to another building to avoid it, and the fire completely destroys the building he had just been standing on. _"This is getting rough. I've got to finish this up now."_ He begins to unclasp the rings around his wrists. They clatter to the ground. Blackdevil begins charging for another burst of fire. Shadow pulls out the Emerald again. He takes a deep breath. _"I just have to…feel the power of the Emerald… Feel what makes it different from the other six… Embrace that difference… Search for it in the world around me…"_ He begins glow with a faint yellow energy. _"…and unleash it!"_ "Chaos…" Simultaneously, the Blackdevil unleashes its fire, and Shadow forms an orb of blinding white light in his hand, which he holds out straight in front of him. The fire impacts the orb, nearly knocking Shadow back, but he struggles against it. The orb grows larger as it absorbs more and more of the fire, and Shadow is forced to hold it back with both hands. By the time the fire stops, the orb is nearly as tall as Shadow himself. Both hands still outstretched, he finishes, "…Shine!" The orb launches forward into a massive energy beam of the same radius, which passes straight through nearly all of the orbs, and hits the robot head-on.

As the smoke clears, it's revealed that the Blackdevil is heavily damaged, missing large chunks of metal, including an entire wing, and appears heavily burnt in the places still intact. But it is still functioning. Its regeneration begins as its eye rolls backwards into its head once more. "Now you're just wasting my time! Chaos Control!" He instantly reappears on the other side. "Chaos Spear!" The eye has only just come out as it is impacted with the explosive attack. The head is completely destroyed. Shadow snaps his fingers again, and reappears just above and behind the now almost completely regenerated neck on the back side. "Chaos Spear!" The second head is blown off, leaving the eye nowhere to go. But the robot still stands. He snaps again, appearing on the robot's side. "Chaos Spear!" The other wing is destroyed. "Chaos Spear!" A sizable chunk of its shoulder is taken out. "Chaos Spear!" Its back. "Chaos Spear!" Most of its undamaged side. With one last Chaos Control, he appears directly underneath it, aiming his arm straight upwards. "Chaos Spear!" The attack wedges itself deep into the Blackdevil's core, and detonates, spraying metal shrapnel around the area where Shadow stands. The mangled wreck of metal that remains topples over to the side.

Shadow slowly puts his arm down. "My name is Shadow the Hedgehog. I have sworn to protect this world, and now I am strong enough to do just that. I will not allow the likes of Eggman and Blacklight to terrorize these people. This is who I am!" He stands there for a moment, and then lets out a brief chuckle. Then he collapses to the ground.

—–—

 **Grand Metropolis City**

 **E-25X: METALUMIS**

Chaos the Hedgehog stands atop a building hundreds of stories in the air, the wind blowing around his spikes. "You are clearly here for me. But you will not be the one to defeat me. It has been foreseen. And how could you? You are but a cheap copy of a traitor." Floating before him is yet another massive robot. It appears very generally humanoid in shape, with long, think arms, and lacking any recognizable head. Its exterior is coated in a bright yellow armor, covered in many sharp corners in a way that makes the armor appear like a processed gem. It has long, sharp claws.

"And yet…" Chaos continues. "…the amount of Chaos Energy you contain…it's incredible… It's impossible…" He thinks for another moment. "This is the Darkness that will consume the world. Not you, but your power source. Doctor Robotnik has taken Energy that the universe cannot give. The universe will demand repayment. In a short amount of time, you will no longer function. But I don't have that sort of time. You must not be here by the time the Controller arrives. So I will destroy you once more!" His fur turns a sharp yellow. Metalumis lets out a mechanical screech. Its claws begin to glow brilliantly as it swipes at Chaos.

Chaos leaps to the side, right off of the building. He only falls for a moment before nimbly landing on a glowing blue elevated road. It immediately begins carrying him forward at extremely high speed. The robot takes off in pursuit. Chaos poses and waggles his finger in his best imitation of Sonic, facing his pursuer and allowing the road to take him backwards. "Is that the best you got?" The robot begins charging an orb of light between its hands, which it releases as a beam. Chaos turns and runs along with the road, taking him forward faster than ever, far out of reach of the attack. "Come and get me, you phony god! You can't beat the real the thing!"

Metalumis picks up enough speed to catch up with him. Its claws begin to glow as it attempts to impale him with them. Chaos does a backflip, which lands him on the robot's hand. From there, he leaps onto its back and aims a hand at the base of its stub of a neck. "Chaos Spear!" As he charges the yellow energy attack in his hand, his chest begins to glow with the outline of a rainbow-colored gem. He unleashes the attack, which explodes in a similar way to Shadow's, though weaker, knocking him back on to the road.

Chaos gets up as the road continues to push him forwards. _"Last time I fought Lumis, the combined power of Sonic and I were scarcely able to defeat him. And now I have no Chaos Emeralds. If I am to win this fight, I must take any advantage I can get."_ He shouts, "What's wrong, copycat? Aren't you supposed to crush me or something?" The robot, relatively undamaged, screeches again as it brings its glowing claws straight down on Chaos. Left with too little time to dodge, he snaps his fingers and lets out a rushed "Chaos Control!" He warps just a short distance forwards, as the robot's claws shatter a large section of the road. Chaos is sent plummeting. But Metalumis is showered with the glowing orange plasma that powered the now-destroyed road.

Meanwhile, Chaos leaps between pieces of falling debris, and lands on another road which runs perpendicular to the previous one. _"If I keep using Chaos Energy at this rate, I won't be able to keep this up for much longer. But the plasma clearly damaged it."_ Metalumis has resumed its pursuit, but it is now heavily burnt and trailing smoke. _"It won't fall for that trick twice. I have to find the source of the plasma, that's how I will defeat it!"_ Ahead of him on the road is a large dome structure, with several other roads leading into it. He picks up speed and runs into it.

Metalumis crashes into the dome just after Chaos makes it in. As Chaos runs up onto the wall of the dome, he skids to a stop and forcefully leaps off of the wall, straight towards the robot. He curls into a ball for a Spin Attack, and strikes the robot in one of its more heavily burned areas, bouncing off and landing back on the wall. He leaps again for another strike at a different place. Continuing like this, he lands hit after hit on Metalumis, beginning to dent and crack its armor. Until it simply catches him on one clawed hand. He struggles to free himself, but its grasp is too tight. Finally, it throws him out of the dome structure with massive force, sending him flying towards a nearby skyscraper. Just after he crashes through its large window, the robot catches up with him, and slams him downwards into the floor. The force of his landing causes a large section of what appeared to be the wall to fall away, revealing a pathway deeper into the building.

Chaos struggles to get up from the crater that has been left in the floor. He seems badly bruised, and is panting heavily. "Is that… …the hardest you… …can hit? I… …was expecting worse!" Despite his injuries, he runs off into the newly-revealed portion of the building. The robot follows. They arrive in a long, tall hallway, twisting slightly off towards the right. Square portions of the wall on either side slam outwards into the opposite wall, seemingly at random, forming large platforms and obstacles. Chaos begins leaping from one to the next, ever closer to the core of the building. The robot simply swats them out of its way. Chaos doesn't seem willing to stick around for a fight any longer.

Having gained a bit of a lead, Chaos arrives in yet another room. This one is cylindrical, extending upwards a dizzying height. More importantly, just below the level of the floor lies a bubbling pool of the same glowing orange plasma from before. Chaos looks over his shoulder as he hears Metalumis approaching at high speed. He pauses for a moment as he carefully times its approach. Then he slams a button on the wall and immediately begins scaling the shaft. Warning sirens wail as the entrance to the shaft begins to close. The robot slips through just as the opening closes. And then the pool of plasma begins to rapidly rise. As Metalumis gets closer to Chaos it begins shooting rapid-fire light beams at him, each one just barely missing. A light shines in from up above. Dodging one last beam, Chaos grabs on to a pulley, which quickly pulls him the rest of the way to the exit. He leaps out into the light, and turns back to face the shaft and the robot. Then his chest begins to glow with the emerald shape once more. "Chaos Shield!"

He throws up his hands, and a translucent glowing yellow barrier appears, blocking the exit. Metalumis appears on the other side. It begins charging one of its larger light beams, and fires straight at the barrier. Chaos clearly struggles to keep the wall up. Giving up the beam, the robot begins repeatedly slashing its glowing claws, seemingly beginning to dent the barrier. But the rising plasma has reached its feet. Its legs grow red hot, but it continues the attack. Chaos shuts his eyes, bracing himself for the shattering of the barrier, feeling the continuing onslaught.

But the barrier doesn't shatter. He cautiously opens an eye to see Metalumis floundering shoulder-deep in the plasma, desperately flailing its claws in an attempt to escape. The plasma flows into the cracks in its armor that Chaos made earlier. It sinks entirely just as the level of the plasma begins to lower once more. The barrier fades out of existence, revealing that Chaos already lies on the floor, unconscious.

—–—

 **The skies above Station Square**

 **E-1X: MECHAOS 7.0**

Sonic plummets through the sky at top speed, after the strange falling machine. Above him, Tails falls as well, spinning his tails to propel himself downwards even faster. Once he catches up with Sonic, he grabs onto his arm and pulls up, slowing their descent.

"Tails! What're you doing!?" Sonic rips away his arm and begins falling again.

"Sonic!" Below them, the machine crashes into the harbor. Sonic seems to hang his head in defeat. This time, he doesn't resist as Tails takes him and lands them both on a tall shoreside building. "Sonic, what was that all about? What did you expect to do?"

"No, you're right. There's nothing I could have done. But I at least could have tried."

"Tried what? That thing just landed in an ocean of highly conductive saltwater. It has to have short circuited by now. Eggman missed!"

"That's where you're wrong. You didn't recognize what that was, did you? He was aiming for the water." Sonic extends his arm, indicating for Tails to look towards the area where the machine landed. The nearby water seems to be coalescing into a growing hill, with the machine at the center. The water level at the shore begins to rise rapidly, submerging the road below within seconds. As the water hill rises, the cables in the back of the machine form into long tentacles, and the whole form begins to take shape. It appears reptilian in nature, with a long snout. A current swirls around and upwards in its core. It can only be an Artificial Perfect Chaos.

Sonic and Tails stare at it with equal awe and horror as it approaches the city. Finally, Sonic breaks the relative silence. "Tails…Eggman said that he…that robots were invading major cities. I need you to contact…everyone. Everyone you can get a hold of. Tell them to drop what they're doing, get to the nearest city, and fight. If we can keep Eggman's forces out of the major cities for long enough…we might be able to at least keep Eggman out of the continent, have a place to strike back from. But if he gets a strong enough foothold here…" He trails off.

"This is what you were hiding, isn't it? You knew it would be this bad. Why didn't you just tell me? We might have been able to get a defense going sooner." Sonic doesn't answer. "Sonic, you can tell me anything, you know that. You don't have to protect me. I'm not just some kid."

"…When you're done sending out the word…I need you to go back to the lab. Grab as many essentials as you can carry. Be prepared to destroy the rest."

"Destroy it!? But Sonic, that's my home! All of my research!"

"Next I need you to find a place. Somewhere…well-concealed…with enough space to comfortably fit a lot of people for a long time. Somewhere we can set up a base. Can you do all that for me?" Behind them, Mechaos has sent water spewing out of every pipe in the city, spurting up from the ground and out of every last window. It continues to crash through building and roadways.

"I–…I'll do it. You can count on me. But…what about him?" He points to the artificial monstrosity.

"I'll handle big-ugly over there. But I'm counting on you. You're my secret weapon. Our ticket to winning this fight. If you think you can handle that, then get to it! Time to rock and roll!" Tails nods and flies off, back towards the Mystic Ruins, fiddling with his communicator as he does.

Sonic turns back to Mechaos. It has stopped in the core of the city. It stares directly at Sonic, and roars. Sonic thinks, _"It's like my Birthday party all over again. And I'm even stronger now than I was then. Taking this robot down will be no problem!"_ Immediately, it fires a massive blue energy beam straight at him. He dives off of the building just in time, the beam sending it crashing down. He lands in a crouch on a floating chunk of road below. It's a straight shot between him and Mechaos. It stays there, waiting for him to make the next move.

Sonic looks around at his position, surrounded by water on all sides. He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. He slowly takes a step forwards, then another. He speaks softly as he walks, "I am the Controller. I am the one who serves to unify the Chaos. I don't need a Chaos Emerald to draw upon the power of Chaos. And I can use it however I will it…for as long as I need it. I just have to concentrate…" He reaches the far edge of the road, and falters for just a moment. Then he takes off at blinding speed.

He opens his eyes to confirm the fact that he is, indeed, running across the water. The robot roars again, and unleashes a flurry of homing energy bolts. Sonic avoids them with a series of quick sidesteps, still keeping up his incredible speed. The attacks explode with a splash into the water around him. Drawing close to it, Sonic draws in a deep breath as he penetrates straight into the belly of the beast. As its internal current carries him upwards, he curls into a spin attack, and strikes the machinery directly.

Mechaos cries out as Sonic falls out onto another small road section. Its form dissolves as its damaged machinery sinks into the water. Then it rises back out some distance away, the water reforming around it. Sonic merely looks on with a chuckle. "Now to do that five or six more times. I can keep this up all day. How about you?"

 **To be Continued…**


	4. Series Premiere: Crisis of Chaos Part 4

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Premiere Event**

 **Crisis of Chaos Part 4**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **December 31st, 6:00 PM, 0 years B.E.**

 **Station Square**

Sonic dashes over the open water, avoiding another set of homing energy bolts. Coming up on a sharp turn, he skids across the water to a near stop, then takes off again in the correct direction without sinking. Mechaos, now in a straight line ahead, roars once more, and flicks its tentacles outwards, creating a line of raging whirlpools just above the level of the water, moving quickly towards Sonic, intended to block his path. But they are no match for Sonic's speed, and he swerves around them with little effort. Now up closer, it's clear that the robot's machinery is heavily damaged, trailing smoke. One last time, Sonic runs straight into its watery center, curling into a spin attack as the current carries him upwards. This time, when he strikes its brain, he goes straight through, sending scraps of metal flying. He casually lands on a rooftop and turns to watch as the mighty creature dissolves into the water beneath it. Slowly, the flooded city begins to drain.

Sonic has broken a slight sweat, but beyond that, hardly seems winded. He jokes, "I'll play with you some other time." He turns away from the coast, towards the interior of the land. "Right now, I've got somewhere to be." He leaps off of the building, and runs at his usual speed out of the city and on to the next.

—–—

 **7:00 PM**

 **Grand Metropolis City**

Night has fallen over Grand Metropolis, now one of the least damaged cities, thanks to Chaos' successful intervention. Chaos sits cross-legged on ground level, in a quaint, park-like area. His injuries can still be seen. He has returned to his usual white color. He seems to be in deep meditation.

Suddenly, out of a flash of blue light, Shadow drops onto the floor in front of Chaos, still very weak. "Shadow!" Chaos, momentarily turning green, gets up to help support him. "Are you alright?"

He pants, "I'll be… …fine. You… …don't look so good yourself."

Chaos smiles. "I'll be fine." He takes a moment to more carefully look over Shadow's condition. "Come, sit down. You need rest." He gently lowers Shadow onto the grassy floor. Then he sits down across from him. "Now, put out the Chaos Emerald in front of you. Good. Now, close your eyes, and concentrate on its energy." Shadow follows all of his instructions, looking a little confused. Chaos also does as he has instructed. "Your energy is low after such a fight. Concentrate hard enough, and you may be able to recover some of that energy through the Emerald."

Both of them take a deep breath. And the Emerald starts to glow more brightly. Shadow, eyes still closed, reacts to it. "I…I can feel it. It's working." He seems noticeably more relaxed.

They sit in silence for a while longer. Then Chaos asks calmly, "You removed your Inhibitor Rings, didn't you?"

Shadow takes a while to answer. Finally, "So what if I did?"

"I told you before, you shouldn't take it so lightly. I can sense the Chaos Energy that flows through you. It's so low that it's a wonder you aren't dead. If you keep it up, you will be."

"I couldn't have defeated that thing without my full power. Without Chaos Shine."

"It is not power that you are free to use. It _will_ kill you. It's only a question of when."

"What do you care? I'm not your precious Controller. I'm just some abnormal thing to you. Some ' _Outlier_.' I don't matter in the grand scheme of the universe. That's what you said, isn't it?"

They sit in silence for another while. Finally, Chaos says, "You know that isn't true, Shadow. Today, I told you how much _you_ have taught _me_ , and I wasn't lying. But there's something else. During my meditation in the temple of the Lost World today, I learned something. You may exist outside of the natural flow of energy in the universe, but that doesn't make you less important. It makes you _more_. Your role in the future isn't just important, but absolutely vital. The single fact of your existence will have near incomprehensible impact on the rest of time." He waits for an answer, but gets none. "But even more important than that…you are my friend, Shadow. Even if you were as inconsequential as I first thought, I would still value your life above my own because of that fact. That is something that I never would have understood without coming here and meeting you and Sonic in person."

More silence. Shadow at last responds, "You're right. I shouldn't have said that. It's a bad habit of mine…pushing away other people."

"Don't let it bother you. I understand. You are still learning to be a different person. Just know that I am genuinely concerned for you. You have to be more careful with those rings."

"I will. Thank you." They return to their meditation for a while. Then Shadow speaks again. "You wanted me to get here as quickly as I could. Shouldn't we be…doing something?"

"Not for now. Not until the Controller arrives. Only then can the final battle begin. But you shouldn't worry about that now. You need to recover your energy. As do I." They resume their focus one last time.

—–—

 **10:00 PM**

Sonic, with sarcastic impatience, declares loudly, "Slacking off on the job, guys?"

Shadow and Chaos simultaneously jump with a start and cry out, "Sonic!" They get up and look at a nearby clock tower, noting the late hour. While Shadow picks up the Chaos Emerald, Chaos takes a moment to look Sonic over. "You…you look almost completely unharmed."

"What were you expecting? I'm no pushover." He starts to look a little more closely, and notices that some of the other two's worst bruises are still visible. "But I guess that didn't work out so well for you two?"

"It just goes to show why you are the Controller. Your skills are undeniable."

After a moment, Shadow says, "So we're all here. Now what?"

Chaos answers, "Now we look behind us." All three of them turn around to see Blacklight, casually leaning against the clock tower building.

"I was beginning to wonder how long it would take you to notice me. You all having fun? I do hope the doctor's machines didn't bore you. He was quite proud of them. Of course, I didn't care. I knew they would do little more than slow you down. That's what I'm here for. But violence is so…uncivilized, don't you think? We're all sentient beings here. Let's settle this accordingly." He turns to Shadow. "You already know your end of the bargain." He turns to Sonic. "And I believe you have been informed of yours as well." Finally, he turns to Chaos. "And you…honestly, I don't really care what you do, as long as you don't fight us. You…like to learn things about this world, don't you? You'll have all the freedom to study whatever you'd like. That sounds like a good deal to me. After all, just think about how many people are being hurt as we speak. While you've been sitting here meditating, Shadow." Shadow is clearly bothered by the remark, but none of them say anything. "Well? What's it gonna be? Lay down arms and live? Or fight and die?"

After a while of silence Sonic says slowly, "I think we would like some privacy to discuss your…generous offer."

"But of course. Take all the time you need. Just call when you need me." He gives big smile. Then he snaps his fingers, and disappears.

Almost immediately, Sonic says, "I…wasn't actually expecting that to work."

Chaos responds, "But worked it has, and now we have a few minutes to plan. Shadow, did you get the same feeling about his energy that I did?"

"I thought he might have been trying to fool us. There's no way he could have that much Chaos Energy…is there?"

"None that I know of. But it was no joke."

Sonic asks, "So how can we fight him then? All we've got is one Emerald. Even if you and I worked together, there's no way that would be enough."

Chaos is silent for a long moment. Then he begins, "There is…one way." He pauses again. "It almost feels wrong…suggesting something like this."

"Something like what?"

"The Power of Chaos…is a balance. A scale. Measured by the difference between Light and Darkness…Yin and Yang. These forces are not meant to exist apart. They will naturally come together. And in such a form they are at their most powerful."

Shadow grows impatient. "What are you suggesting?"

"If a soul of Yin and a soul of Yang exit the Flow of Chaos in the the same location…they will do so as one."

Sonic seems to understand, but is still perplexed. "So you're saying…Shadow and I…"

Chaos finishes, "Can combine your power into one."

Shadow steps forward. "That sounds ridiculous, and none too pleasant." He looks to Sonic for a moment. "No offense to you."

Sonic sneers back, "None taken. I feel the same way."

Chaos continues, "Please, don't just dismiss this idea. This is important. If you take anything away from this scene, let it be this: this will work because the laws of the universe allow for it, not the other way around. This isn't just some contrivance, some reinterpretation. The laws of Chaos were established long before this process was ever even a concept. That is what you must understand. That is what **everyone** must understand."

Sonic and Shadow seem incredibly confused, almost as if the speech was meant for someone else. But neither one questions it. Instead, Sonic asks, "So what exactly do we have to do?"

"First something must be done about you, Shadow."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"As of now, your soul is not dark enough to balance Sonic's light."

"So how do we change that?"

"When I first chose to train you…it was because of your ability to change your Chaos Nature, almost at will, something that most cannot do. In order to shift your Nature towards Darkness…you must get angry."

"And how–" Chaos punches Shadow across the face. "What the H–" He does it again. And again before Shadow can even open his mouth. As he goes in for another, Shadow grabs his arm in the air. Faint red sparks can almost be seen around Shadow. He growls, "One more time, and the arm comes off."

"That will do quite nicely. Now, both you and Sonic must take hold of the Emerald." They do so, Shadow still keeping a glaring eye on him.

Sonic asks, "Now what?"

"Now…both of you must use Chaos Control. At the same time."

"And go where?"

"Don't go anywhere. Reappear right between the spots where you two now stand."

"And that's all it takes?"

"We can go a step forward from there. But start with that."

Left with nothing else to say, both Sonic and Shadow face each other, and take a deep breath. "Chaos Control!" For a moment, both disappear completely. Then one hedgehog returns where two once were. His fur is dark blue, with red streaks throughout. His spikes curve downwards like Sonic's, but still spike upwards at the tips like Shadow's. He floats slightly above the ground, radiating an audible aura of Chaos Energy.

"How do you feel?"

Two voices respond, "Balanced. Like with the Chaos Emeralds, but more natural. As if this is how I'm supposed to feel."

"Then it worked. You have achieved a feat like nothing else in the history of the universe, Perfect Chaos balance. You are able to draw upon the maximum amount of both positive and negative Chaos Energy. But that will not be enough to counteract the extreme amount of raw negative energy that Blacklight wields. Now, I must add my power to yours."

"Will that work with me like this?"

"My task in coming to this world was to add to the power of the Controller. That is still you. It will work." Without another word, Chaos steps forward, and raises his outstretched hand up above the level of his head. The other hedgehog makes a similar motion with his opposite arm, and approaches until they are face-to-face, and their fingertips touch. Then Chaos begins to glow intensely with a rainbow-colored light. The Emerald pattern on his chest glows brightest of all, so strongly that it almost seems as if it has physical form. This form continues to consolidate as it seems to absorb the rest of the light, absorbing all of Chaos the Hedgehog into one multicolored gem. The Emerald moves straight into the other hedgehog's hand. Then he lifts it straight above his head, and its colorful light washes over him. Slowly at first, but then ever more rapidly, his fur begins to flash the seven colors of the Chaos Emeralds. Now there is one Hedgehog where there were once three.

"My my, isn't this an interesting turn of events?" Blacklight has returned, and looks with curiosity at The Hedgehog. But Blacklight has transformed as well. The white portion of his fur has turned pitch black with just a few speckles of white. He radiates a shadowy energy as he floats in the air. The white of his eyes has turned yellow, and the irises blood-red. "Clearly you _are_ Shadow…but you are also not. Did you really see it necessary to bring your friends into this?" He smiles. "I'd really hate to hurt them trying to _destroy_ you. But you never cared much for innocents, did you? Is that why you let _Maria_ die?"

The Hedgehog is unfazed. "Enough games, Blacklight. I–"

"That's Black _Night_ to you!"

"I don't care what you call your Super Form. This ends here."

"I couldn't agree more." At once, he aims both arms in front of him and shouts, "Chaos Inferno!" His streaks of fur, and even shoes and gloves all turn a fiery red, as he releases a jet of flames from his hands.

"Chaos Shield." With the casual raise of a single hand, The Hedgehog creates a thick barrier, which deflects the flames with ease. As he puts down the barrier, he realizes it's too late to stop Black Night's mach-speed punch. The Hedgehog is knocked back, but quickly recovers. He puts on a scowl and dashes at Black Night at a blinding speed. Black Night does the same. The two strike in the middle, creating a flash of light and sending both of them flying back. Immediately they both charge in for another strike at a different angle. Again and again the two hedgehogs clash, faster and from farther away each time. Eventually, all that can be seen is a web of zigzagging colorful streaks, all merging at a center point. Even from high above the Metropolis rooftops, the fight can be clearly seen. Thunder rumbles in the stormy clouds above.

—–—

 **11:55 PM**

"Chaos Void!" Black Night's colors turn dark purple as he unleashes a massive beam of shadowy energy.

"Chaos Shine!" The Hedgehog unleashes a beam of his own, one of pure, blinding light. The two attacks collide in the center, and an orb of swirling light and dark energy begins to form around that point, resembling a Yin-Yang. Inside of The Hedgehog's mind, the voice of Chaos sounds _"Can you feel it as well?"_ Shadow's voice answers, _"We're almost out of energy. We can't keep this up much longer!"_ Sonic's voice finishes, _"We need to rethink our strategy. We weren't counting on him having this much power."_ The growing orb explodes, unleashing a massive shockwave which sends both fighters flying back.

Black Night searches through the clearing smoke. But the other hedgehog is nowhere to be seen. "Oh Shadoooow! Where aaaare you? I thought you wanted to finish this now. I'd hate to learn that you've run off when we were having so much fun! Come out, come out wherever you are!" He begins to drift forward as he searches.

In the shadow of an alleyway between two small buildings, the three hedgehogs are no longer merged. Shadow demands in a harsh whisper, "Why did we split up!? I thought we were just going to attack differently!"

Sonic looks to Chaos. "I have to agree with Shadow on this one. We may not have been making any progress, but we won't even stand a chance apart like this. Why did you break us up?"

Chaos shakes his head. "No…there is no different way to attack. There is no winning in this direct conflict. But not all is lost. There is a way."

"What are you talking about?"

From a short distance away, Black Night calls out again, "I know you're here, Shadow! You can't hide from me!"

Chaos continues, "I noticed it earlier when I was in combat with one of Robotnik's mechs. The amount of Chaos Energy which powers both the machines and Blacklight does not come from nowhere. That much energy is not meant to be taken, and it will be taken back in full. The question is when."

Shadow asks, "What does that mean for us?"

"It means that some time in the near future, Blacklight will be at his weakest. All of his power will be taken from him, creating a sort of energy vacuum. It's possible that it would kill him, though I wouldn't count on that. But for now…the Controller must live to fight tomorrow. You must retreat."

"What do you mean 'you'? What about yourself?"

"I'll distract him so you two can get out of here. You wouldn't be able to escape otherwise. I'll be out right after you. You have nothing to worry about."

Sonic doesn't seem very convinced. But he does give a "Good luck."

"And to you." Chaos looks up to the area from which Black Night approaches. "I will use some energy…to disguise myself. It will help cover your escape." He waves his hand across his own chest, and the physical rainbow-colored gem appears underneath, embedded in his skin. It begins to glow, and its light washes over him. As it dissipates, it is revealed that his appearance has changed. He now looks just like The Hedgehog from before. Without looking back, he walks out of their hiding place. With an accurate voice, he shouts "Here I am, Blacklight! Come and get me!"

The look on Sonic's face grows more and more concerned, into outright fear. Shadow says to him, "Come on, Sonic. We have to get out of here." But Sonic remains transfixed. The clock tower just above strikes midnight, sounding a loud _"Gong!"_

Black Night stops a short distance from Chaos. "Got tired of all the suspense, did you? Are you ready to settle this war for real now?" _"Gong!"_

"That's where you're wrong. The battle ends here and now, but the war has only just begun." _"Gong!"_

"Suit yourself." _"Gong!"_

Shadow more forcefully demands of Sonic, "We have to go, now!" _"Gong!"_

Black Night directs his hands forward as his colors turn dark purple once more. "Chaos Void!"

Chaos throws up his own hands. "Chaos Shield!" Everything seems to slow down, and grow completely silent. Except for the clock tower. _"Gong!"_ The sound reverberates and echoes in the slow silence.

Shadow now tugs on Sonic's arm. But Sonic continues to watch as the beam of dark energy impacts the thin shield. The shield splinters and cracks. _"Gong!"_ Chaos turns to face Sonic, and is clearly surprised to see him still there. His mouth can clearly be seen enunciating the word "Run!" But all that can be heard is the clock tower's _"Gong!"_

The shield shatters completely. Chaos is completely enveloped by the massive energy beam. _"Gong!"_ A moment later, a dull grey gem clatters to the floor as the energy dissipates. Then time returns to normal. Black Night looks down at the immense crater he's just created with a massive grin on his face. "I…I did it. I killed Shadow the Hedgehog!" _"Gong!"_ He breaks out into a raucous laugh of triumph. He laughs louder and louder. _"Gong!"_

Tears stream from Sonic's eyes. Simultaneously with the twelfth _"Gong!"_ he shouts with anguish, "CHAOS!" A light sleet begins to fall to the ground. With one last forceful pull, Shadow finally gets him to move.

Black Night sharply cuts off his laugh and looks straight into the shadows of the alley. "Who's there!?" He flies straight into the alley. But there is no one left.

—–—

Tails walks out into the snow, carrying a pack on his back, and a small device in his hand. Once he makes it to the bottom of the hill on which his home was built, he turns back to look at it. Then he puts a hand up to his ear as he hears something from his communicator. He nods and puts his hand back down, his eyes solemnly directed at the lab. He presses a button on the device. The reflection of a fiery explosion can be seen through his teary eyes.

—–—

Knuckles the Echidna cradles the shrunken Master Emerald in his hands. Far out to the sea behind him, Angel Island crashes into the water. He stops as he hears something from the the communicator in his ear. He nods and looks back to the Emerald. As he holds it with one hand, he shatters it to pieces with the other. He never looks back.

—–—

Vector the Crocodile holds the telephone to his ear, nodding in response to something. He puts the phone down as Espio the Chameleon and Charmy Bee look to him questioningly. He simply points to the window. Outside, a massive army of Eggman robots marches towards them. The Chaotix each hold up a fist in resolve to fight.

—–—

With a swing of her immense hammer, Amy Rose smashes aside several robots at once. Cream the Rabbit and Cheese the Chao cower in fear behind her. They are surrounded on three sides by the army. As Amy continues to fight, she hears something over her communicator and nods. After one last powerful swing forces all of the robots back a few steps, she grabs Cream by the arm and runs off out the only escape route.

—–—

Somewhere deep in the wilderness, Big the Cat casually fishes out of a small lake, Froggy beside him. He is completely oblivious to what goes on in the outside world.

—–—

A squadron of G.U.N. soldiers fight off the robot army in a line formation. Leading them is Rouge the Bat. Though most of the soldiers wield guns, she fights primarily with her feet. One soldier goes down to a laser blast, forming a break in the line. One soldier after another follows quickly. Within just a few moments, Rouge is the only one left standing. She looks around at her odds. She turns around and flies off. She has no communicator. One fallen soldier struggles to lift up a hand, as if calling out to her. But she never turns back to the battlefield.

—–—

 **January 1st, 6:00 AM, 0 years A.E.**

 **Eggman's Hidden Base, Unknown Location**

Blacklight stands with his arms crossed, looking at a massive screen filled with various video feeds and other information about the war. Robots work at various consoles all around the room, particularly at the base of the screen. He starts to stumble for a moment, and brings a hand up to his head. His vision blurs in and out. For a moment he has a terrible thought. _"Is this what it's like to feel…weak?"_ He shakes it off and resumes his composure. He declares out loud, "How goes the war effort?"

One of the working robots responds in a mechanical voice, "Attack plan is working at optimal predicted efficiency, General Blacklight. Approximately seventy percent of major cities have laid down arms and surrendered. Another twenty percent have had all governmental offices destroyed. All other information is classified."

"'Classified'!? What do you mean, 'classified'!? I am your General, and I demand–"

A familiar voice calls from behind, "No need for that, General." Doctor Eggman strolls into the room.

"There you are! Your pathetic machines won't tell me–"

"That's because I wanted to tell you in person. Let's be reasonable about this, hmm?" Blacklight never even looks back at him, just nods. "You see, there is a bit of a flaw we recently discovered in the 'Chaos Amplifier,' the product of our little Chaos Project."

"A flaw?"

"Yes…you see, we've discovered that significant use of Chaos Energy produced by the Chaos Amplifier can leave behind a sort of…energy vacuum. Energy seems to drain from the user, and the exact effects are…variable. For many of the less active robots fueled by the Amplifier, this merely meant shutting down, a complete drain on its power source. But for the more active ones that survived their battles…they may have…disintegrated." Blacklight does not respond to this, seeming a bit distracted. "Yes, the very molecular bonds holding them together simply broke apart, leaving behind a pile of a few elements. Every last bit of energy in the system was removed."

"Well…I suppose it's a good thing that I'm so powerful. Otherwise, I might have actually noticed such a loss of power." His eyes remain forward.

"Yes…" Eggman pulls out something. "…a very good thing indeed."

Blacklight heard the sound, and all too late realized his mistake. He had been played from the very beginning. Somehow, Eggman had been able to abuse Blacklight's power, and make him weak enough to kill, all with the same device. But in that instant, there was nothing that he could do about it. He felt the laser blast penetrate his back. Then he felt no more.

—–—

Eggman puts away the weapon. Indicating the corpse at his feet, he shouts, "Someone get this thing out of my sight!" A robot gets up from its station to follow the order, and others switch consoles to fill in the gap.

The robot asks, "What should I do with it, sir?"

"Oh, I don't care. Throw it down the garbage chute! And when you're done with that, destroy the Chaos Amplifier. I have no need for a device that destroys my workers. Mark the Chaos Project down as researched to completion, for no further study or use." The robot leaves. "Now, I believe it is time for me to start running this world. And with Sonic dead, I shouldn't have any problems for many years to come. But when I do…I will be ready. And that is when I will at last achieve true power! Hahahahahaha!" He continues to laugh as the scene zooms out, first showing the base, then the continent, then the entire world. "Hahahahahaha!"

 **To be Continued…**

* * *

 **The cause lives on…**

 **The Rebellion will rise.**

 **But first…**

 **The past must be reviewed.**

 **Prepare to take a step back in time…**

 **Season 0 begins now.**


	5. S0 E1: A Glitch in Time

**Previously in the Sonic the Hedgehog Series…**

[Sonic]: ( _As seen in Sonic Adventure 2. Sonic looks into the dull yellow Emerald he holds.)_ "Somehow, I managed to use the Chaos Control…"

—–—

[Sonic]: _(As seen in Sonic Colors. He looks down at a broken wreck of a robot.)_ "Wow, sometimes I even impress myself! For a second there I wasn't sure if I was going to pull it off. Oh, who am I kidding? We both knew how this would end."

[Tails]: _(Walking in from behind. Sonic is startled by his sudden appearance.)_ "Uh…are you talking to the broken robot who can't hear you?"

[Sonic]: "Uh…maybe. That's between me and the robot."

—–—

[Knuckles]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog.)_ "Now, how can we get back to our own time?"

[Shadow]: "You need a space-time rift. But this requires a lot of energy."

[Sonic]: "I see. You mean using your Chaos Control will…"

[Shadow]: _(Pointing at Sonic.)_ "Yes, but that alone is insufficient."

[Sonic]: "Okay, Shadow. It looks like we need to work together."

—–—

[Shadow]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. Holding an Emerald, Shadow looks to Silver.)_ "With a Chaos Emerald's power, I can control time and space…

[Silver]: _(He pulls out his own Emerald.)_ "Can't lose…not when I'm so close!" _(He cries out as he charges at Shadow.)_

[Shadow]: "Chaos…"

[Silver]: "Chaos…"

[Both]: "…Control!" _(Both leap out of the way as the Emeralds react to each other, creating a space-time rift.)_

—–—

[Elise]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. She is holding a small flame.)_ "If we put out this flame…Solaris will never exist… It will never have happened…" _(She blows out the flame, and everything goes dark.)_

 **And now, the continuation…**

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 1**

 **Speed of Time, Part 1: A Glitch in Time**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **December 26th, 1 year B.E. — One year before the Day of Earth's Demise**

 **White Hill Zone**

Sonic crunches over the thick layer of snow on the ground. Tails trudges alongside him. "Sonic, are you sure Eggman's up to something? In the middle of winter? In the middle of nowhere?"

When Sonic speaks back, his voice, as usual, is nasally and low in pitch. "Chill out, dude. We came out here to have fun, remember?"

Tails is suddenly pelted in the side of the head with a snowball. "Hey!" Sonic is bent over, racked with snorting laughter, still holding a second ball. Beginning to laugh as well, Tails makes a snowball of his own.

Sonic is hit just as he recovers from his laughter. Wiping the snow off of his face, he shouts, "Oh, it's on now!" He rolls out of the way of a second shot from Tails, then throws the snowball he still holds.

Tails covers his face and braces for the impact. But the ball never hits him. He slowly lowers his arms and looks curiously at the strange, colorful energy vortex which has formed between him and Sonic. "What…what is that?"

Sonic seems perplexed as well. "I dunno…it looks kinda familiar though…" He shakes his head. "I'm sure it's nothing. Come on, let's–" He stops as the vortex begins to pulsate more intensely. Suddenly a small, red, dome-shaped robot pops out, standing on one wheel. Its front is covered in snow, presumably hit by Sonic's lost snowball.

Tails observes, "It's a Motobug!" He gets into a fighting stance.

"Hold up." Sonic puts a hand out in front of Tails, stopping him. He observes the confused, blinded robot more closely. It's face is blue instead of black, and it doesn't have any spots on its back. "It…it looks like an old model. I haven't seen one like this in years. But…a robot is a robot!" Sonic effortlessly attacks and destroys the defenseless bug. The small animal contained inside happily bounces away.

"I sure wish I brought my Handheld. I'd love to study this distortion a bit more. Maybe it's some kind of…teleporter?"

"Whatever it is…I smell a rotten Egg behind it. He must have a base near here."

"Well, let's go find it then!"

"That's what I like to hear! Let's roll!"

—–—

 **White Base Zone**

Sonic and Tails stop at the foot of a massive building built into the side of a hill. "What did I tell ya? Was I right, or was I right? Score one for Sonic the Hedgehog!"

"Sonic…are you feeling alright?"

"What's there to feel bad about? We're about to storm a base, smash some bots, and crack some Eggs. Can you think of anything more fun?"

"That's…not exactly what I meant… I mean lately you've been…nevermind. Let's take care of Eggman."

"You got it! Let's–" Something shiny lands right on his head. "Ow! What the?" He looks down at the object that hit him. It's the cyan Chaos Emerald. "Oh, cool!" He picks it up and examines it.

"A Chaos Emerald? And it just fell out of the sky?" They both look up to see another vortex, some distance up overhead. "Maybe Eggman isn't behind this. Why would he be throwing Chaos Emeralds at us?"

"Maybe he ran out of robots." Sonic promptly strolls into the base, not questioning his own logic for a single moment. Tails doesn't even bother to suggest otherwise, and follows him in.

—–—

 **EGG ROOK**

Sonic runs into an interior room, Tails close behind. "Hey, Baldy Nosehair! Why don't you show yourself already!?"

"I'm right here, you pathetic blue porcupine." From the shadows, Eggman floats in on his Eggmobile. "I don't know how you found my base, but now I'll make you pay for it!" He presses a button on his hovering craft, and a large section of the floor parts to reveal a massive mech rising from the ground.

"'Porcupine'? You insults are slipping, Egghead. You can do better than that, can't ya?" He says aside to Tails, "Well, I guess he's not out of robots."

"Oh, and you find your own insults to be any more original? I've heard it all a hundred times. And I grow tired of it." Eggman's craft lowers into the center area of the mech, a heavily armored machine with broad shoulders rimmed similarly to the the top of castle walls.

"And really with the chess robots again? I thought you were done with that. Man, you really are running out of ideas."

"Silence! Egg Rook, attack!" The mech slams down its bulky fist at Sonic. Sonic Easily slides out of the way, and hops onto the arm.

"Come on, Egghead! You're making this too easy!" From his position on the arm, Sonic is easily able to jump off and deliver a spin attack at the mech's cockpit. "How am I supposed to have any fun if you don't challenge me?"

"Thank you for reminding me, Sonic. I had almost forgotten." He presses another button, and four thick walls rise up around the cockpit, closing up at the top. Eggman can still be seen through a thick window at the front. He now talks through a speaker. "After all of our many engagements, I've finally realized what I've been doing wrong. I've always left you a weakness! But that ends today. You can't touch me!"

"We'll see about that!" Skipping Eggman's attack, Sonic begins scaling the mech on his own accord. Eggman unsuccessfully tries to swat him off. But when Sonic goes for the cockpit, he thuds harmlessly off of the glass.

Tails yells, "That didn't work, Sonic!"

"Your fox friend is right, Sonic. You've already lost."

Sonic stops and thinks. He looks at the enclosed cockpit. There is a considerable amount of open space inside. Then he pulls out his new Chaos Emerald. "You're wrong, Egghead. It's you who's lost!" He holds the Emerald high in the air. "Chaos Control!" In a flash of light, Sonic appears suddenly inside of Eggman's cockpit. Immediately, he begins tearing at the machinery inside. Eggman cowers and shields his face. Once Sonic is satisfied with his work, he warps back out. After a moment of wobbling, the mech topples over with a crash.

"Curse you, Hedgehog!"

"Oh, yeah! Am I cool, or what!?" He looks down at his Emerald. "I…I almost forgot how good that felt."

Tails steps forward to congratulate him. "Now let's finish the job and blow this place, right?"

"You got it! Let's go find the core!" He turns to the fallen mech, which Eggman is still struggling to get out of. "See you next time, Eggy!" Sonic and Tails run out.

Eggman finally squeezes out of a back hatch. Then he stops. "Wait a minute…" He pulls out a Chaos Emerald. It's cyan, just like Sonic's. "How very interesting… I must investigate this further!"

—–—

"Help me…" Sonic skids to a stop as he hears the faint voice. "Please…help me…" He runs off in the direction of the voice.

Soon, he arrives in what appears to be a dungeon, full of cells. But one of them isn't empty. Sonic runs right up to it. "Hey, are you alright?"

Inside is what appears to be a young woman, but with pure, glowing white skin. Her hair is long, wavy, and dark blue. She speaks softly, "Are you Sonic the Hedgehog?"

"That's my name! Don't wear it out."

She gives him an odd look, but then continues, "I knew you would find me here eventually. I've been searching for you."

"Hang on a sec, I'll bust you out of there." She takes a step back, and he attacks the bars of the cell, destroying them.

"Thank you, brave hero. But if you will allow, I require your help further.

"Sure thing. Whadaya need?" She steps out of the way, revealing yet another energy vortex. "It's another one of those things!"

"Do you know what this is?"

"It looks kinda familiar…but no, not really."

"It is called a space-time rift." Sonic seems intrigued by the name, but comes no closer to remembering. "These are why I need your help. Naturally, a space-time rift requires a massive flux of Chaos Energy in order to form."

"You mean like with Chaos Control?"

"Yes, but larger than that. But as it seems you have noticed, these rifts have been appearing seemingly at random."

"Are they dangerous? Is that the problem?"

"On their own, no, they pose no specific danger. They are the symptom of a much greater threat. The end of all time."

"End of time? How does that work exactly?"

Tails, who has apparently just caught up, says, "I think I can explain. In this building alone, I've found twenty-four separate rifts. This one makes twenty-five. And each one is growing. Let's assume that, somewhere in the universe, there is one rift leading to each moment in all of time. And let's say that two of these rifts that are close to each other grow large enough that they actually cross each other's boundaries. What do you suppose would happen if something went through the two intersecting rifts?"

"Well…you would go to both moments at the same time…right?"

"As little sense as that makes, yes. So then what would happen if every last rift grew large enough to encompass the entire universe?"

"Uh…then the entire universe…and all of time…would all be at the same moment."

"Exactly. Then there would be no time, because all of time would be at the same…time." Tails looks up to the woman. "You seem to know more about this than we do. Does that sound about right?"

The woman answers, "An interesting interpretation, well suited to a linear train of thought. I would explain your flaws…but I do not believe your mind can comprehend the extradimensional physics involved."

Tails is about to make an objection, but Sonic speaks first. "So what exactly do you need me to do?"

"Hmm…if you would allow me to use a similar linear interpretation to your friend…the source of the problem is Chronos. Chronos is the lord and protector of time. But he…" She stops to think for a moment. "…after having watched over time for so long…he has grown lazy. He is slacking in his duties. And so, time is falling apart. The only way to save the universe as you know it is to defeat Chronos."

"Alright, where can I find this Chronos? I'm ready to take him on, right now. He's got nothin–"

"Don't be a fool! Chronos is an ancient offshoot of the almighty Lords of Chaos! He cannot be defeated without use of the Temporal Sapphires, scattered throughout all of time!"

Sonic and Tails both stand agape at the sudden outburst. Then they start to process what she said. Finally Sonic hesitantly asks, "The Lords…of Chaos? Temporal Sapphires?"

"You mean to say that you aren't aware of the Lords of Chaos?" She shakes her head. "Oh dear, maybe I've chosen the wrong Hedgehog… There isn't enough time for this. Sonic, I need you to assist me, in collecting the Temporal Sapphires, and putting an end to the reign of Chronos. Will you help me?"

"A time-travelling adventure to stop an evil ruler from ending the universe? Sounds like fun. Count me in!"

Tails cheers, "Yeah, me too!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Nuh uh, no way, not happening. You are staying right here in this timeline, and that's final."

"Aww, howcome?"

"Time travel is dangerous business, Tails. One wrong choice, and you have no chance of coming back. I'm not going to put you in that kind of danger again."

"Sonic, we came here to sabotage and destroy the secret lair of a mad, deadly robot-building doctor. Danger is part of my job, I already know that."

"Tell you what. You go back to the lab and get or build whatever recording equipment you need. Study the rifts. Learn every last thing you can about them. From here, you might just glean that bit of information we need. You can do a lot more for us here than you can in there. Sound like a plan?"

"Okay…"

The woman grows impatient. "Are you ready to go, then?"

"I'm ready."

"Then follow me…" She turns and walks straight into the rift.

Sonic takes one last look at Tails. "Sonic…watch your back out there. You're not invincible, and you won't have anyone out there to watch it for you."

"Don't sweat it. This'll be no problem!" With that, he leaps into the rift.

Knowing that he can't be heard, Tails shouts anyways, "I was trying to tell you _not_ to get overconfident!" He sighs and shakes his head. But then he stops. "Wait a minute…did he say 'put you in that kind of danger _again_ '? What does he mean, ' _again_ '?" He is left alone to ponder.

—–—

Eggman intently watches the security footage of Sonic's departure. "Hmm…how unusual. That dungeon was meant for misbehaving robots! I never took any prisoners. So who is that strange woman? Orbot, Cubot, where did she come from?"

His not-so-trusty block-shaped servant responds, "She's really pretty… Maybe she's an angel, and she came down from the sky!"

Cubot's spherical counterpart smacks him on the back of the head. "Sir, earlier footage shows her emerging from the space-time rift in the cell."

"So why did she lock herself in one of my cells?"

Again, Cubot is the first to answer. "Maybe she takes her freedom for granted and wanted to see what it was like to be a prisoner of Doctor Eggman. I know I wouldn't have done that if I were her."

Eggman mutters, " _Maybe_ I ought to lock _you_ up in one of those cells…"

Again, Orbot corrects, "Maybe she wanted to make herself seem more trustworthy to Sonic by portraying herself as an enemy of you, Doctor."

"Hmm…it seems someone is trying to deceive Sonic…but why? Could she be responsible for the duplicate Chaos Emerald? Or…could this have something to do with that other gem…?" He suddenly stands up. "Orbot, Cubot, begin immediate research into the space-time rifts. I want to know exactly what they are, where they come from, and what they do!"

Both give a salute. "Yes Sir!"

—–—

 **The Void**

Sonic falls out of the rift and looks around. All there seems to be in every direction is blackness, besides a strange orb of blue light, and a few other scattered rifts. "Whoa, where am I?"

In the woman's voice, the blue orb responds, "You aren't. You are nowhere, you are nowhen. You are in a void outside of space-time."

"What happened to you?"

"The form you saw before was only an illusion. I have no comprehensible corporeal appearance. This is the closest you can come to seeing my true appearance."

"Speaking of appearances, what does this 'Chronos' look like?"

"Much like myself, Chronos has no physical appearance. However, it is a strong possibility that he will attempt to interfere with your attempts to defeat him. If he does so within your three-dimensional world, he could theoretically appear in whatever manner he chooses. Or whatever manner you choose."

"I choose?"

"Yes. He may leave it to your mind to interpret what he might appear as. For example, he may take on the appearance of an enemy of yours. Or perhaps something more familiar to you, such as another hedgehog. Or, he could choose his own appearance. There is really no telling, so you must be ready for anything."

"Alright! So how long do I have to wait here before the fun starts?"

"This is no game. The fate of the universe is at stake."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I've heard that already. The way I see it, it's the danger that makes it worth doing. That's just how I roll!"

She sighs. "I suppose we can begin now, then." For a moment, the orb begins to glow brighter, then dies down as something seems to come out of it. It is a tall, floating gem of a brilliant blue color. " _This_ is a Temporal Sapphire."

Sonic grabs it out of the air. "Well, it's certainly pretty. What does it do?"

"With that Sapphire in your possession, you will be able to travel through time at will. All you have to do is reach a high enough speed."

"Are you suggesting that _I_ might not be fast enough?"

"I had no doubt of your abilities when I selected you for this task. Using that Sapphire, you must collect the others."

"How many are there?"

"Well…that is an interesting question. There are…many. But I can find them all."

"If you have the ability to find them from here, how do you not know how many there are?"

"Silence! I will not question your abilities if you do not question mine. Now, I believe it is time for you to get going."

"Okay…where exactly am I going?"

"It is not a question of where, but when. And the answer to that question is to many thousands of years into your past. That is where the next Sapphire lies."

"And how do I get there?"

"Do not concern yourself with that part. I shall guide your travels. All you have to do is run."

"Now _that_ I can do." He's about to take off in the opposite direction, but he stops. "Who are you, anyways?"

"Me? I am called…Janice"

"Nice to meet ya, Janice. You already know who I am. And I guess it's time to get out of here." He takes off at high speed into the darkness. The orb of light shrinks away behind him. As he picks up speed, the Sapphire in his hand begins to glow intensely, and release a shower of sparks. Then sparks start forming around Sonic himself. The sparks become an entire aura cloaking him, and after a sound like lightning, Sonic is gone, a new rift left in his place.

—–—

 **Fallout Zone**

A rift tears open, and Sonic pops out, landing in a pile of ashes. He gets up and dusts himself off. He begins to take a look around, and is awestruck by what he sees. A short distance away from him is what once might have been a great thriving city. Now, it might be mistaken for ancient, ash-colored ruins. Even from outside, it is clear that most buildings have been reduced to rubble, though many still stand. The ones that do have all of their windows blown out, many still with shards of glass inside. There is no life. Only the dull grey. "Whoa…I thought she said this was the past, not life after the apocalypse."

 _"I did. And it is."_

"Hey, where'd that voice come from?"

 _"We can communicate through the Temporal Sapphire, you fool."_

"So what happened here?"

 _"Now is not the time for a history lesson. Go find the Sapphire."_

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." He starts moving toward the city.

 _"Be warned. When you see a rift, anything might come out of it. And if Chronos is on to our plan, it is likely that he will send opponents through these rifts specifically to hinder your progress. Knowing him, this would likely consist primarily of enemies you have faced in the past. Be ready for anything. I don't see it likely that Chronos will come after you himself. But if he does, you must be prepared for that as well."_

"Quit worrying. I'm the one and only Sonic the Hedgehog, and I don't need caution."

 _"You are a fool."_ Sonic ignores her, and quickly crosses the line into the city, leaving footprints in the ash behind him.

—–—

 **ZERO**

"A few Eggman robots and a couple of Dark Gaia minions? I was expecting better out of Chronos than that."

 _"If he doesn't see you as enough of a threat to spend much effort stopping you, then that is a good thing. The less trouble you have, the better. Even what you have done so far may be enough for him to change his mind at any time."_

"It's his bad for underestimating me. Now, where is that Sapphire…?" He begins searching around once more. He stops upon seeing a glint of blue hidden in a clearing of grey rubble. "Aha!" He runs for it. Once he gets to the center of the clearing, he kneels down and brushes the ash off of the gem. "Now all I have to do is pick it up, and–"

"Get your hands off of that Sapphire!" Standing on the opposite side of the clearing is another hedgehog. His fur is a vibrant green. The spikes on the back of his head start off at an upwards angle, and sharply turn to angle downwards instead about halfway back. He has a single larger spike on the top of his head that goes slightly higher than the rest. "You heard me. Step away."

Sonic thinks back for a moment. Janice had said to him, _"Chronos has no physical appearance…_ _he could theoretically appear in whatever manner he chooses… For example, he may take on the appearance of an enemy of yours. Or perhaps something more familiar to you, such as another hedgehog."_ "Another hedgehog…you must be Chronos. Do you expect me to be afraid of you?"

"I _expect_ you to do what I say if you don't want to get hurt. I don't want to hurt any animoids, but I will if you force me to. And…did you call me Chronos? I'm afraid that you've been severely misinformed. Just step away from the Sapphire, and we can discuss this like civilized creatures. My name is Zero."

"Trying to pull one off on me? Even I'm not that dumb. And is 'animoid' supposed to be an insult? I think you need to work on that one."

"Enough! I don't know who you are, but I won't let you get in my way!" He charges at Sonic.

"Bring it on!" Sonic takes off as well. _"Sonic, stop! That's–"_ The voice of Janice is cut off as the two hedgehogs collide, sending Sonic tumbling back, and causing him to drop the Sapphire.

"You have another one!? Who are you!?"

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog. The guy who's going to take you down!"

 **To be Continued…**


	6. S0 E2: Ground Zero

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 2**

 **Speed of Time, Part 2: Ground Zero**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **Thousands of Years Ago**

 **Fallout Zone**

The ruined city of ashes lies a fair distance away. In the seemingly endless field of ash outside walks a lone figure, a hedgehog with vibrant green fur. "It's been over a year since all of this began. Yet still I walk these streets, wondering what I could have done if I had been there…instead of hiding like a coward." He kicks a pile of ash, and it flies up into the air. He sighs. "If only there was something I could do about it now…" He pulls out something. A bright green Chaos Emerald. He stares intensely into it. "And still I'm left to wonder what you are…where you came from."

"Help…help me…" He suddenly goes alert at the sound of the faint voice. "Please…I need help…"

"That voice…it's coming from the outskirts of the city. Don't worry, I'm coming!" He takes off towards the city. He isn't quite as fast as Sonic.

Suddenly, he is stopped as a massive space-time rift appears right in front of him. "Another portal!?" Out of the rift emerges a hideous two-legged creature, with slimy black and red skin, holding some sort of laser weapon. A Black Arms soldier. "What in the world!?" It points its weapon at him. "Oh no you don't!" He wastes no time in delivering a spin attack, bursting the fragile alien in a wave of green slime. He gets up and wipes himself off. "What was that thing?" He looks up to the still-open rift. "And what is that thing?" He takes the Emerald back out. "It's just like the one you came out of…"

"Help me…"

He shakes off the distraction and resumes his run towards the city. "Sit tight, I'm almost there!"

Within a short while, he reaches the city, and only has to turn a single corner before he finds what he is looking for. Shortly ahead is a little girl, with one leg trapped under a pile of rubble. "Please, help me. I can't move."

"I'll get you out of there, just hang on." He looks up. A little bit above, a rift is visible right in the middle of what used to be the support beam of the building. Its appearance must have sent the whole building crashing down. He goes right up to the girl, and grabs the large piece of rubble that traps her, lifting it up with only a small amount of difficulty. The piece is nearly twice as large as he is.

The girl is able to crawl free. He drops the large chunk as she stands up and starts to look at him. She has pure white skin, and her hair is short-cropped and deep blue. "Thank you for rescuing me."

"Are you hurt?" He braces himself, perhaps expecting an upsetting response.

"No. I'm fine."

"You…you aren't scared of me?"

"Of course not. You saved me."

He smiles, clearly delighted to have someone to talk to. "What's your name?"

"I am called Janice."

"It's nice to meet you, Janice. My name is Zero."

"I know who you are. And I still need your help."

"Sure. What do you need?"

"I need you to help me save the world…the universe."

Zero is taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Janice points up to the rift which collapsed the building. "Surely you have seen those before, right? Do you know what they are?"

"All I know is that they tend to cause trouble. Most of the time."

She begins a familiar speech. "It is called a space-time rift."

"Space-time? You mean like the fabric of reality and all that stuff?"

"Correct. These are why I need your help. Naturally, a space-time rift requires a massive flux of Chaos Energy in order to form."

"Chaos…Energy…" Zero is ripped into a flashback. _Everything is red and angry. There is a powerful explosion of energy. A man screams. Several other screams join his._ Zero shakes himself out of the memory.

"As I'm sure you have noticed, these rifts have been appearing seemingly at random, without any such Chaos Energy."

"So what does it mean? How are they forming?"

"It is not the 'how' that matters, but the 'why'. They are the symptom of a much greater threat. The end of all time. As more of them appear, it shows that the fabric of time undergoes further breakdown. Eventually, time will no longer exist."

"So…why then? Why is time breaking down?"

"Chronos. Chronos is the lord and protector of time. But he has grown lazy. He is slacking in his duties. And so, time is falling apart. The only way to save the universe as you know it is to defeat Chronos."

"Defeat him? You mean…I have to…" He trails off. "Is there really no other way? Have you talked with him? Maybe he isn't aware that this is happening. Maybe if we just talked to him, we could–"

"No. There is no reasoning with Chronos. No matter how I have tried, he will not see reason. This is the only way. If you are to save the universe as you know it, you must be willing to do whatever it takes."

"Hmm…" Zero ponders this for a while. "If what you're saying is all true…who does that make you? Why do you know all this?"

She smiles. "I already told you. I'm Janice."

"Yes, that's your name. But _what_ are you? Clearly you're not quite a human. And you know things that no human would."

"My, it seems you are the smart one. But perhaps too pacifistic… You really wish to know who I am?" He nods. "Then I shall tell you. For as long as Chronos has ruled over time…I have served as his apprentice. So I can assure you that what I know, I know from personal observation and experience."

"And yet…you appear so young. How is that?"

"My appearance here is only an illusion. I have no true corporeal form."

"I see… I…I'll do anything that I can to help. Anything at all, just say the word."

She smiles again. "I was hoping you would say that. In order to hold your own against Chronos, you will need the Temporal Sapphires."

"Temporal Sapphires?"

"The Temporal Sapphires are gems of immense power. They act as…anchors in time. Time naturally flows from one Sapphire to the next, and that is where they get their power. From time itself."

"Gems of power…" He pulls out his green Emerald. "You mean like this?"

"Not quite. What you have there is a Chaos Emerald. You really aren't aware of that yet?" He shakes his head. "It seems that I'm always too early…but there is no helping it now. A Chaos Emerald acts for the flow of Chaos much as the Temporal Sapphires act for the flow of time. The natural energy moves from one to the next, creating what is understood as a fundamental force of the universe. But then, space, time, and Chaos are all one and the same, when you get down to the essentials." Zero seems completely bewildered. "There is no time to explain it in detail now, time continues to break down as we speak. When the time comes, you will understand. But for now, you must gather all of the Temporal Sapphires in one place."

"Hold on. You said the Sapphires are like time anchors. And you want me to travel through time, gather them all, and then take them to wherever Chronos lives, which would be…outside of time? Wouldn't that ruin the universe…worse than it already is?"

"And your perceptiveness shows itself once more. In theory yes, it would be problem, removing the Sapphires. But that problem…" She indicates the rifts all around them with her hand. "…is already occurring. Time is already breaking down, and so the Sapphires are not currently serving their purpose. Removing them at this point would have a negligible effect. And you need them for a greater purpose."

At this point, it almost seems as if Zero wants to drag on the conversation. "So there's a Temporal Sapphire nearby that you want me to get…then what?"

"Your power is great. With a single Temporal Sapphire, I am certain that you will be able to open your own space-time rift at will."

"Make even more rifts? Isn't that part of the problem?"

"It is a necessary evil. Now go, find the Sapphire." She points towards the center of the city.

"But what about–"

"Go!"

Still, Zero waits for a moment. But finally, he says, "Alright." He gives a nod and then runs off in the direction of the gem which might hold all of his answers.

—–—

Zero's pace has slowed down considerably. "The Sapphire is close…I can feel it. But why? What makes me able to sense these weird gems?" He stares into his Chaos Emerald again. "A Temporal Sapphire…the ability to travel through time at will… With that kind of power…maybe I could stop…" He is pulled into another flashback. _A bright streak flies across the sky at incredible speed, leaving a trail behind it. Directly below, Zero runs faster than he's ever run before, in a hopeless attempt to keep up with it. It quickly surpasses him, and arcs down towards the bustling city quite some distance away. "No, no, no!" The streak impacts the center of the city. But not before another streak is released in the opposite direction from a base not far away. Everything goes white._ "Could I really have that much power? Could any one person? Maybe I could even change…" _There is a powerful explosion of energy. A man screams._ Once more, he shakes himself out of his memories. "I'll drive myself crazy thinking of such things. I must focus on the mission at hand first."

Up ahead, the buildings thin out into what might have once been a park area. There is an especially large pile of rubble. And standing on top is another hedgehog, reaching for a long, deep blue gem. "Get your hands off of that Sapphire!" The blue hedgehog, Sonic, looks over at Zero with a start. "You heard me. Step away." _"I should've guessed I wouldn't be the only one after these things. Anyone who knows that this kind of power exists would stop at no ends to get ahold of it. But then…he's an animoid, not a_ human _."_

Sonic answers with vague interest, "Another hedgehog…you must be Chronos. Do you expect me to be afraid of you?"

"I _expect_ you to do what I say if you don't want to get hurt. I don't want to hurt any animoids, but I will if you force me to. And…did you call me Chronos? I'm afraid that you've been severely misinformed. Just step away from the Sapphire, and we can discuss this like civilized creatures. My name is Zero."

"Trying to pull one off on me? Even I'm not that dumb. And is 'animoid' supposed to be an insult? I think you need to work on that one."

"Enough! I don't know who you are, but I won't let you get in my way!" He charges at Sonic.

"Bring it on!" Sonic takes off as well. The two hedgehogs collide, sending Sonic tumbling back, and causing him to drop the Sapphire.

"You have another one!? Who are you!?"

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog. The guy who's going to take you down!" Staying in place, Sonic curls up and charges a spindash, launching forward and taking Zero by surprise. He hits. "Had enough yet?"

Zero smirks. "Not quite." He has landed right next to the second Sapphire, and picks it up. "Now I–"

He stops as he hears a voice call out in his head, _"Zero, I'm communicating with you through the Sapphire. Don't hurt him!"_

"You can do that?"

" _Yes, now listen to me. That hedgehog is your ally. I have sent him on the same mission as you."_

"You mean that guy? Why him?"

" _He is a wielder of Chaos, much like yourself. Now, tell him to get his Sapphire."_

Sonic, who seems quite perplexed, shouts, "Okay, what the heck is going on here?"

"Pick up the Sapphire that you dropped. She will explain it to you.

Sonic seems more confused than ever, but does as he is told. When he picks up the gem, he stops as if being talked to. Janice speaks to Zero as well. _"I can only give my sincerest apologies for this mistake. As I sent you, Sonic, back in time, I was simultaneously attempting to locate other Sapphires, and selecting another hero to join in the quest. In my confusion, I sent you to the wrong time. My intention was to send you considerably earlier."_

Zero responds, "So when did you plan to tell us we weren't working alone?"

" _I didn't see it necessary. You were not supposed to encounter each other until all of the Sapphires were collected. It was my assumption that you may become distracted by each other's doings, a waste of precious time."_

Sonic proposes, "I think that still leaves one last question. Are there any _other_ allies we should know of?"

" _As a matter of fact…yes. Please return to the void, and you may be able to meet him."_

"Gotcha." Sonic tosses the Sapphire into the air once, snatches it back, and takes off running down a street. Within a moment, he becomes cloaked in a blinding, sparking light, and just as quickly disappears through a new rift.

" _Follow him."_ Zero shrugs and hops into the rift as well.

—–—

 **The Void**

Sonic and Zero land one after the other into the endless stretch of blackness that is the void. Zero looks around in wonder. Floating before them is the orb form of Janice. "Welcome back, Sonic. And welcome for the first time, Zero, to The Void, a place outside of space-time. Your final ally shall be joining us shortly."

Zero steps forward. "While we wait…I wasn't quite satisfied with your answer before. Why him?"

Sonic gives an offended, "Hey! What's wrong with _me_?"

"I've known you for five whole minutes, and I can already tell that you're an arrogant, selfish fool. Sure seems to me like a liability."

"Oh really? Maybe you'd like to go another round, see who's really a liability around here? You certainly weren't winning that last fight."

Janice interjects, "Enough! This is why I wanted to keep you two separated. There will be no fight. He is arriving."

Sonic and Zero look over to see a new rift forming. A figure with silvery-white fur emerges, and gently floats down to the floor. Sonic is shocked, almost horrified. "No way…"

Silver the Hedgehog rises, and his eyes immediately lock onto Zero. "You! What are _you_ doing here!?" He unleashes a powerful wave of psychic energy.

—–—

 **A Short Time ago, Far in the Distant Future**

 **Neo Soleana Zone**

Silver the Hedgehog levitates himself forwards beneath a gloomy sky. A dim red glow illuminates him from underneath. "This world was devastated before I was born." The red glow grows bright and harsh as Silver passes above its source. He lowers himself onto the rooftop of a tall building, right in front of the brightly illuminated billboard. He turns and looks out at the vast, bustling metropolis before him. "But that all changed when the Controller came. Using the power of the Miracle Gems, the Controller single-handedly cast away the darkness, and brought balance to the world. All of this happened long before I was born. Now, we live in a bright, happy place, where no one ever has to live in fear. And now…I am the Controller. Sometimes, I still question what it all means. How did this happen? Why me? They will always answer me directly. They say that it means I'm a hero. That I'm gifted with the use of the Miracle Gems. But that's not what I'm looking for." He sits down on the edge of the building, letting his feet dangle hundreds of feet above the ground. "How can a person be revered by millions, but feel so alone?"

"Help me! Help me!" Silver gets up with a start at the sound of the voice. "Help!" He hardly needs a moment to think. He lifts himself up, becoming cloaked in aqua-colored psychic energy, and propels himself off in the direction of the voice at an incredible velocity.

—–—

 **CHRONOS**

Silver, now on ground level, runs through a crowd of people, making his way to the center. By the sound of it, they are all terrified, and hardly notice that he's there. Finally, he makes it to a clearing in the center. In the very middle of the clearing stands an elderly woman, with pure white skin and silvery-blue hair cascading all the way to the ground. Standing above her is a terrifying creature. It appears as if it might be made out of wood, or some other hard material. It has broad shoulders, one of which is colored bright red-orange, with small protrusions around it, resembling a representation of the sun. The other is a lighter grey, and has a large round chunk out of it, resembling a crescent moon. The top of its head is round and flat, with a single right triangle protruding out of it near the back, similar to a sundial. It has on its back what might be comparable to black butterfly wings, if they weren't so torn and demonic-looking. On the creature's front is a series of notches in a circle, with one longer and one shorter protrusion coming out from their center point, very similar to a clock. The time indicates 11:55.

"Everyone clear out!" Silver shouts to the crowd. "This thing looks dangerous!"

All eyes turn to Silver, including those of the creature. Everything is silent for a moment. Then the crowd begins to slowly back off, murmuring excitedly that Silver has arrived. Many still stay and watch from a distance, some of them recording him with high-tech equipment. The creature remains absolutely still. Next, Silver points to the woman. "That means you too. It isn't safe here."

"It will only follow me."

"Fine. Then stay behind me and I will take care of this!" She slowly takes the few steps necessary to put Silver between her and the creature. "So do you know what that thing is? Why is it after you?"

"It is called Chronos. I can explain its intentions at a later time. For now, you must eliminate it, or it will destroy the city."

Chronos roars in challenge. Silver gives a confident scoff. "I am not afraid of you! I am Silver the Hedgehog, protector of this world! I will not allow you to threaten these people!" Silver launches the first attack, a wave of psychic energy. Chronos barely flinches upon being hit. But still, he does not make a move of his own. "This guy seems tough. But I will not back down!" Next, Silver uses his powers to lift two sets of wooden tables and chairs some distance away on either side of him, and launches them at Chronos. Just as they are about to impact, Chronos roars, and a shockwave seems to emerge from his jagged mouth, causing the projectiles to freeze in place. "What!?" Silver is disgruntled, but he redoubles his effort to throw the objects. Still, they don't move an inch. Chronos roars again, and the clock on his front ticks backwards a fraction of a notch. The projectiles begin moving in the opposite direction that Silver still tries to force them. They gently set down in exactly the positions they were picked up from. "What in the world!? He just turned back time!"

"He has that power. He is the master of time. You must fight him!"

This time, Silver stops, and waits for his opponent to make the next move. They stare eachother down for a long moment. Then Chronos roars, and attempts to smash silver with one of its proportionately massive fists. Silver nimbly dodges out of the way, and launches another psychic wave at his sundial head. This time, Chronos is knocked back a step, but is still pretty much unharmed. "Take that!"

Now, it seems really angry. It roars again, louder than ever, and fires a beam of deep blue energy from its mouth. Silver barely manages to dodge in time, and the spot where he had just been standing crumbles to dust upon contact with the strange energy. While Silver is still distracted, Chronos makes an odd swirling motion with one of its hands. Silver frantically looks around himself, trying to see what it did. Directly behind him, a massive rift is opening. As Silver looks back to Chronos, he realizes that he was distracted for too long. Chronos already lunges at him, and all three of them tumble through the portal.

 **To be Continued…**


	7. S0 E3: Silver Lining

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 3**

 **Speed of Time, Part 3: Silver Lining**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **CHRONOS PHASE 2**

Silver slowly comes to consciousness with an earsplitting headache. The first thing that comes to his attention is an odd, faint blue glow against the blackness of his vision. As he sluggishly opens his eyes it becomes clear that the source of the glow is a long, sparkling blue gem lying on the floor just in front of him. The woman's voice, almost as if from his head, calls out, "Yes, grab the Sapphire. Take hold of it. You need it."

Silver reaches out for the Sapphire. But he can't quite reach it, despite stretching his arm as far as he can. It comes close to collapsing as darkness edges his vision once more. But then the aqua pattern on his glove begins to glow brighter and the gem lifts into the air, as Silver psychically draws it into his hand. Immediately, his vision becomes sharp and clear. Gaining energy with each passing moment, Silver stands up in the metallic room.

On the opposite side, Chronos also staggers to its feet. Its clock now reads approximately 5:00. It roars and once more releases the massive beam of blue energy. Silver tries to get out of the way, but he stumbles and falls, still somewhat weak. He raises the arm holding the Sapphire up to protect his face, and flinches in preparation to be hit. But nothing happens. He cautiously opens his eyes to see the beam passing all the way around him, as if he were protected by some invisible sphere. The Sapphire glows fiercely. Silver realizes what's happening.

With a flick of his hand, he uses his psychic powers to dissipate the beam. Chronos seems momentarily stunned. Silver slowly begins walking forward. Chronos tries again, but Silver effortlessly dispels the attack. His pace increases as his confidence grows. With a far more dramatic movement, he attacks with a massive wave of psychic energy. It strikes Chronos, and sends it flying backwards, crashing through the metallic wall.  
Chronos struggles back up, and immediately attempts to pound Silver with one of its thick arms. Silver stops the arm, and entraps Chronos' entire body in psychic energy. It attempts to break free, but it's no use. Silver takes a moment to think. Then he says aloud, "Hmm…I wonder what happens if I do this!" With his free hand he directs his energy Chronos' clock. The minute hand ticks. Then, picking up speed, it begins to circle around the clock face. The patterns of light in Silver's gloves turn from aqua to an intensely bright blue color. All around them, people suddenly appear, move around, and disappear, all at hyper-speed. Outside, through a window that can now be seen, the Earth far below begins to rotate rapidly, as moments of intense brightness come and go as the sun passes in and out of view. The wall that was damaged by Chronos is almost instantaneously repaired. But then, the people stop coming. The metallic walls begin to crack and dent, turning rusty, as the windows grow grimy and difficult to see through.

A few last indiscernible figures zip through just before Silver collapses with exhaustion. Chronos seems heavily weakened as well, its clock now displaying close to 6:00. Upon close inspection, it seems as if its solid skin has grown aged and cracked. Still, it gets up, and lets out one last defiant roar, charging for another attack. Drawing from the power of the Sapphire once more, Silver again psychically grasps Chronos' massive body, and this time does not hesitate before hurling it over his head and out the window, sending it hurtling towards the Earth below. Immediately, the room begins rapid decompression, all of the air being blown out into space, and forcing Silver out along with it. But Silver uses his powers to hold himself in place just before he would have been thrown out along with Chronos. Within a few moments, an emergency shield closes over where the window used to be, resealing the room and stopping the escape of air.

Silver lets himself down and walks over to another still-intact window. Outside, the distant figure of Chronos can still be seen falling. Until perhaps the broadest rift yet opens beneath it, swallowing Chronos completely. "What!?"

"Calm down, Silver. You have won this fight." The woman steps forward and puts a hand on his shoulder. But now, she appears considerably younger, with hair only just below her shoulders.

"But he got away!" He prepares to break open the window and pursue. "I should go after him!"

"No. He has returned to his own realm, a place where you could not possibly fight him. Yet."

Finally, Silver relaxes a bit. He starts to look around. "Why…why are we in space?"

"You are currently aboard ARK, your planet's very first space colony. When we arrived, we were just days after it had been put into commission. Now, we are just days from its destruction."

"The ARK…the ARK fell out of orbit centuries ago! Not only did we travel back in time to get here…but then we traveled forward in time when I attacked Chronos. That's impossible!"

"It is time that you redefine what is and isn't possible. You are a powerful being, Silver, and that is why I have chosen you to help me save the universe."

"You're a time-traveller…the entire universe is in danger…and you chose me to save it? Why me? You should know the answer. What makes me so important!?"

" _I_ am so much more than a time-traveller. And _you_ are the Controller of–"

"I know that already! Why can't anyone just tell me what I want to know!?"

She suddenly takes on a stern tone. "I may be able to help you save the universe, but I can't help you with your own insecurities! Do you want to save your world, or not!?"

For a moment, Silver doesn't answer. He walks back up to the window, and presses a hand against it, looking down at the Earth below. The rift is still visible, expanding at an almost unnoticeable rate. Finally, he speaks, without turning his eyes away from the planet. "I don't know…I mean…what's the point?"

"The point? The point is to save the world. I don't see how I could possibly put it in any more simple terms than that."

He suddenly turns to face her again. "Saving the world is what I have been doing over and over and over again for practically my entire life, but here I am, needing to save it again! It never changes, no matter what I do! What if the world is supposed to be destroyed…?"

She lets out a barely audible groan. "First a fool, then a pacifist, now this? Maybe I should have put more thought into this team beforehand…"

"What was that?"

She puts on a smile again. "Oh, nothing. Perhaps it will comfort you to know that you were not the only one chosen for this mission. There are two others like you. Would you like to meet them? Maybe they can help you make this _very important_ decision."

"Others…like me?" He is silent for a long moment. "I've already made my decision. I will go. Tell me everything."

—–—

"Now, focus your psychic powers. Not on any particular object, but on the empty space in front of you," Janice explains.

Firmly holding the Temporal Sapphire in one hand, Silver reaches out with the other, and his aqua patterns begin to glow.

"Good. Now…tear it open. Let it part before your will."

He throws his arm to the side in a dramatic movement, as his patterns again change to a deep blue glow. And then the fabric of space-time tears in front of him, opening a rift. "I did it!"

"Very good. Now, follow me in." Janice softly steps into the rift, and disappears through it. Silver takes one last look around before lifting himself in as well.

He emerges in an area of blackness all around, save for a large number of rifts scattered around, and two other hedgehogs watching his entrance. Unsure that there is any solid ground beneath him, Silver very carefully lowers himself to the floor, paying no heed to the other hedgehogs, or the great orb of light that they stand in front of. As he does, he can hear one of them say, "No way…"

Finally on the ground, Silver rises and looks at the others. The one with green fur immediately catches his eye. He is pulled into a brief flashback. _The very same green hedgehog rushes at Silver. No matter how hard Silver tries to move, it's as if he's caught in slow motion, forced to watch as the other hedgehog strikes him._ Now, Silver looks upon the same person who attacked him all that time ago. Yet he doesn't appear to have aged a day. "You! What are _you_ doing here!?" Without wasting any time, he launches a powerful wave of psychic energy. The green one barely manages to dive out of the way in time. The blue one stands off to the side, still completely bewildered.

"Where is the Gem, you thief!?"

"Please, calm down, you have this all wrong! Let's just talk about this for–" He dives out of the way of another of Silver's attacks.

The voice of Janice declares, "Silver, stop!"

Silver obeys and looks up to the orb of light, the source of the voice. "This guy attacked me and stole one of the Miracle Gems when I was just a kid! What is he doing here!?"

"He is participating in the mission just as you are! I have gathered each of you three Controllers here for your great strengths. The first…the last…and the greatest. But now I'm beginning to think it was a bad idea to bring these ones together…"

The blue one, Sonic, seems to take momentary pride at being called that greatest. But then he resumes his deep pondering. Silver, on the other hand, cries out in dismay, "The last!? What do you mean the last!? If I'm the last Controller…doesn't that mean the world is going to end? Why else would there not be another one after me!?"

"Calm down! That wasn't the point! I'm not here to teach you about any of your futures, so just stop asking!" She takes a moment to calm down. "The point is, you are all allies here. Silver, you are looking at _The_ Controller, the one that you are supposed to revere."

The green one takes a cautious step towards Silver. "You see? I don't know what all of this Controller business is about, but I'm one of the good guys here." He extends his hand. "My name is Zero."

Silver doesn't move. "I don't trust you. There's no way you could be _The_ Controller."

Zero regrettingly takes his hand back. "Look, I don't know why you think what you do about me…" He pulls out a Chaos Emerald in one hand and a Temporal Sapphire in the other. "…but I think I would remember taking one of these from you. I can only tell you that I've never met you before."

"So…you don't remember it at all?"

"I would be lying if I said that your face didn't look familiar. But again, I think I would remember getting in a fight with you. I'm not a fighter."

Janice interrupts, "Enough of this. We are wasting time. Zero, I have the time of your next Sapphire."

"Alright. How do I get there?"

"Time Control. As I told you, your connection to the natural energies of the universe is stronger than any of the others here. With your Temporal Sapphire, I believe that you can use that power to open a rift without adding any outside energy. It should be far more precise than the methods of the other two. Now, use the Sapphire to open the rift. I will guide its destination."

Zero nods. He puts the Chaos Emerald away, and holds the Sapphire straight out. "Time…Control!" The Sapphire pulses with light as it unleashes a visible shockwave of energy, tearing open another rift as it contacts a point just in front of him. He seems satisfied by his work. For a moment, he turns to the other two hedgehogs, as if contemplating saying goodbye. First he looks at Sonic, who doesn't seem to be paying attention. Then he looks at Silver, who still has his arms crossed as he glares distrustingly at Zero. Zero changes his mind, and leaps into the rift without another word or gesture.

"Silver, I have a Sapphire for you as well. Do just as you did before, and open the next rift."

"Right." Silver lifts his own Sapphire, and this time much more efficiently tears open his own rift. He lifts himself into the air in order to move himself through.

"Wait!" Sonic is suddenly perfectly aware, and reaches out as if to stop Silver. Silver lowers himself back down to face Sonic. "Silver…that's your name, right?"

"Yeah?" Sonic seems to want to say something next, but he doesn't seem to know quite what. So Silver continues, "That's my name…what's yours?"

"I'm…Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog." Still, he struggles to find exactly what to say next.

Trying to help him along, Silver begins, "When I first got here…you seemed shocked, almost as if you recognized me. And you're acting so confused. But that isn't possible…right?"

Still, Sonic doesn't answer for a moment. Finally, he says, "Even if I knew how to explain it…I don't think that anyone could ever possibly understand it." Now Silver is the confused one. "Let's just say…we were supposed to– er…I _have_ met you…but you haven't met me."

"Uhh…well, I suppose you were right. I don't understand what you're saying in the slightest." When Sonic doesn't elaborate, Silver again turns to leave.

One last time, Sonic stops him. "Silver?"

"Yeah?"

"…How is Blaze?"

Silver takes on a puzzled look. "Who's Blaze?" Not given an answer after waiting another moment, Silver finally hovers into the rift.

Sonic seems very deep in thought. But Janice snaps him out of it, "Enough fooling around. You have work to do. I already had a place for you to go before you got here, if you'll remember. Earlier than Zero's time."

"Sure thing. Let's roll!" Just as last time, Sonic tosses his Sapphire into the air and catches it with style, before taking off at top speed. Within moments, he has gathered enough speed to breach into a new rift.

—–—

 **Speed City Zone**

Sonic runs out the other side of the newly-formed rift, and skids to a stop. He looks around and gives a low whistle. All around him are skyscrapers reaching higher than he can see, moving lit sidewalks, personal vehicles flying by at incredible speeds. The city is, perhaps, even more technologically advanced than Grand Metropolis. Sonic lifts up his Sapphire and speaks into it. "Forgive me if I ask the same question that I asked last time. What happened to taking me into the past?"

Janice mocks back, _"Forgive me if I give the same answer that I gave last time. This is the past."_

"Whatever." He resumes looking around and begins casually strolling forward.

 _"You should pick up the pace. You don't want your presence in such a heavily-populated area of your past interfere with the timeline."_

At that moment, a harsh shriek can be heard. Sonic looks over to the side of the road to see a little girl pointing at him and screaming. Within moments, a dense crowd has gathered, most murmuring fearfully, a few with wonder. Trying to ease the situation, Sonic declares to all of them, "Everyone, please calm down! I'm just passing through, don't mind me!" The murmur grows much louder, with many discordant cries of "It talks!?"

Suddenly, Janice's voice declares, _"Get out of there, now!"_ Sonic prepares to leap over the heads of the crowd, but is stopped when three human-sized, aerodynamic-looking robots crash down in formation on the ground in front of him. The crowd screams and mostly disperses.

The robots all at once declare, "UNIDENTIFIED CREATURE, SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY."

Sonic scoffs. "Or what?"

"OR BE DESTROYED." Each of the robots' arms transform into cannons, all pointed at Sonic.

"You're gonna have to catch me first!" He takes off at high speed in the opposite direction. Each of the robots lift into the air, then jet off after him just as fast.

Sonic looks back as he runs, to see that they are, in fact, gaining on him. "DO NOT RESIST. SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY."

"Hey, not bad. This might actually be fun!" He skids into a sharp right turn. The robots skillfully maneuver around the same turn a moment later.

Sonic, gaining confidence, barely has enough time to dodge the first laser blast. Several more quickly follow, and Sonic is forced to slow down in order to dodge all of them. The robots are almost upon him. At the very last second, he rounds another right turn, and this time the robots lose some ground in pursuing him. As Sonic runs down this street, he gets an idea. He does a swift sidestep onto the sidewalk to his right, which already moves at a high speed. He has to dodge around a few frightened pedestrians, but the added speed lets him leave the robots in the dust.

—–—

The buildings around Sonic are now much smaller, and the sidewalk has stopped moving. He seems to have made it to the outskirts of the city. He takes another look behind him. "Looks like I lost 'em. Too bad. It almost felt like a challenge for a minute there. Janice, am I close to the Sapphire?"

 _"It should be just ahead."_

Sonic slows to a stop and looks more closely around. A soft glow catches his eye a short distance away. He begins to run for it, but is again stopped by the three military jet robots landing in formation in front of his path. "SURRENDER. FINAL WARNING."

"You don't scare me! I already outran you back there, and I can do it again."

Without another word, each of the robots link hands. Sonic takes on a confused look. Then the machinery of the robots begins to shift and transform, first linking the robots together, then merging them all together into one massive, deadly robot. Immediately, it aims a massive arm cannon at Sonic, and cannon shoots a wide, electrified net. Sonic leaps out of the way.

"They're not trying to kill me, they're trying to capture me!"

 _"Well, don't let them!"_

"Easier said than done!" He dodges another laser blast.

 _"Look for a weak point!"_ Sonic does a quick run around the robot to search for one. In the back, he sees it. A point where three slightly different colors of metal, from the three different robots, meet at a weak-looking joint. He doesn't waste any time in going in for a spin attack. But the robot uses its jets to rapidly spin around 180 degrees, swatting Sonic out of the way before he can hit. He gets up quickly.

"This might take a while…"

—–—

 **Jungle Chase Zone**

Zero emerges from his rift deep in the heart of a dense jungle. Janice speaks to him, " _As I said, your Time Control should be very precise. You should already be within a few feet of the next Sapphire."_

He seems quite distracted. All around him, wildlife, plant and animal alike, all seem almost as a part of the world itself, coexisting in such a vibrant, lifelike environment. Zero had never seen so much life at once in all of _his_ life. Finally, he shakes himself out of his distraction, and responds, "Looking for it now." He looks around for a while, but sees nothing on the floor. But eventually, he has the thought to look up. Almost directly above him, a glittering blue gem rests several stories high in the canopy of the trees. "Found it!" He quickly begins making his way up the tree trunks, climbing vines and leaping from branches. It's a long way down below him.

He eventually reaches a point high enough that much sunlight still shines through, unblocked by lower leaves and branches. The Sapphire lies a few trees in front of him. "Almost got it." He leaps over to the next tree, but as his head just breaches over the very top of the canopy, something catches his eye. Something moving through the air. When he lands, he begins moving at a much more rapid pace, afraid for the worst. But by the time he makes it to the tree holding the Sapphire, there is already a small mechanical claw taking hold of it. He changes direction, and moves to the very top of tree in order to get a look at the thief.

A familiar voice calls out, "I'll be taking that!" Sitting in what is easily recognizable as his hovering Egg Mobile, Doctor Eggman lets out an evil laugh as he begins to float away with his prize. "Oh ho ho!" Upon closer inspection, it can be seen that his outfit is a bit different. His shirt, which is now tucked in to his usual black pants, is much more simplistic in design, being red all over except for two yellow suspenders reaching down over his shoulders and to the top of his pants. He wears a yellow cape which seems a if it might be connected to the suspenders on the front of the shirt.

"Get your claws off of that! You don't know what you're dealing with!" Eggman, or rather, Robotnik, simply continues to laugh, as Zero begins the chase.

—–—

Zero walks with a defeated gait. "I lost him. What now?"

 _"Find him again. You aren't leaving without that Sapphire."_

"Easier said than done…" He stops as he reaches a brief clearing in the trees, revealing a sparkling, crystal blue lake. Once again, Zero is struck by the beauty of nature. Where he stands, he is mostly covered by the shadow of the canopy, except where he is covered by blue light, reflected from the lake. One might actually mistake him for having blue fur in such lighting.

"Sonic!" Zero barely has any time to react, before he is suddenly embraced by a pink hedgehog, none other than Amy Rose. "Oh Sonic, I'm so glad I finally found you! I've–" She stops as she opens her eyes and looks more clearly at Zero. Immediately, she lets go, and takes a step back. Just like Eggman, her appearance is different as well. The spikes on her head are combed back, appearing quite a bit more like Sonic's. She wears a somewhat formal-looking dress, green on the top with a frilly red-orange bottom. She wears bluish-purple sneakers. Zero blushes at the sight of her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! You see– I thought– with the light and– I mistook you for someone else!"

Zero is equally flustered. "No, that's fine– uh, I mean– I just wasn't expecting to be–… I'm sorry, I need to go." He turns to leave.

"Wait!" He stops and looks back. "Who are you? I've never seen you before."

"Umm…my name is Zero. And I really have to–"

"Nice to meet you, Zero! I'm Amy, Amy Rose." She eagerly extends a hand. Zero, after blushing again for a moment, shakes her hand. Then he turns to leave again. She casually follows him and matches his stride. "So, what is it that you're so busy with, out here in the heart of the jungle?"

He seems surprised at first at being followed, but answers, "I'm looking for…a very particular gemstone. A long blue one. Like this." He pulls out his Sapphire to show her.

"That isn't…a Chaos Emerald?"

"No, not exactly. I had already found it, but then it was stolen by a fat man in a hovercraft."

"Tiny glasses, big nose, bigger mustache?" He nods. "You're looking for Robotnik."

"No…it couldn't be…" Zero is pulled into yet another flashback. _Zero's voice screams out in agony. He just keeps screaming for several long moments. Finally, he quiets down, panting. A gruff voice speaks, "That's very good. Don't worry, just a little more, and then we can be done for the day. I can move on to another Subject." Zero responds, "No…keep going. No others." "Hm. Talkative today, are we? Very good. The more you help me, the more I can help you. Resume the test!" Zero cries out in agony once more. Suddenly, the scream trails off to a dull moan, and then to nothing. The voice comments, "Oh dear, it seems that he has lost consciousness. Oh, well. Bring out Subject 009!" A pair of hands reaches out to unfasten the straps holding Zero to his chair. Struggling to keep his eyes open, Zero manages to whimper out, "No…I can keep going…don't…don't bring out Nine…please…" He slumps over once more._

"What was that?" Amy pulls him back to reality.

"Oh…it's nothing. You were talking about this Robotnik person?"

"That's right. Robotnik is a madman who builds robots to do his bidding."

"Well that sounds…fitting."

"That's right. And where Robotnik is up to no good, _Sonic_ is sure to stop him."

"Sonic?" He thinks to himself, _"So this must be Sonic's time…or close to it, anyways."_ "You said his name earlier, as well. Do you know him?"

"Well, sort of. He saved my life from one of Robotnik's robots a while ago, and…I never got a chance to properly thank him for it. He just moves on to the next place so fast…"

"Chasing evil scientists and crushing robots? I'm sure that's all a lot of _fun_ for him."

"Fun? No, I wouldn't think so. There's nothing that Sonic does that isn't for the sake of others. When I was capture by Robotnik's robot…you should have seen the look on Sonic's face. I looked into his eyes, and I knew that he would stop at nothing to save me. Anyways, by the sounds of it, you know Sonic too."

"Sort of. We crossed paths pretty recently. He didn't much strike me as the heroic type. But then…you're haven't come all the way out here into the heart of the jungle, in a vain hope to find him, just so that you could thank him, have you?"

"Well, you got me. I was hoping that maybe…I might be able to impress him enough… to get him go out on a date with me."

Zero's face shows an odd mixture of understanding with disappointment. "I see."

"So…this all works out pretty well. We can both look for Robotnik together, and through him we can both find what we're looking for!"

Zero smiles. "I'd like that very much. So let's stop strolling around here, and start looking for Robotnik!"

 **To be Continued…**


	8. S0 E4: Once, Upon Many a Time

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 4**

 **Speed of Time, Part 4: Once, Upon Many a Time**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

Sonic stands in triumph over the broken wreck of the fused military robot. "Not bad, for a few-thousand-year-old hunk of junk. But let's be honest. That's what you get when you try to outspeed the fastest thing alive!"

 _"Cut the gloating and get the Sapphire. You're wasting time."_

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm–" He stops as he is suddenly cloaked by a dense shadow. He looks up to where the sun was, perhaps hoping to see clouds rolling in. Instead he sees what might at first be mistaken for a flock of birds, closely bunched together, and flying at a downward arc towards Sonic's general area. But they aren't birds. As they get closer, it becomes clear that each of them is another military jet robot, hundreds of them in total, moving towards Sonic at supersonic velocity.

 _"Get the Sapphire, now!"_ Sonic runs off towards the area where he saw the gem, and reaches it within a few seconds. The gem is unusually short.

"Janice…I hate to break this to you, but this is no Sapphire. This is the blue Chaos Emerald."

 _"What!? What are you talking about? Of course it's the Sapphire."_

"I think I know a Chaos Emerald when I see one. And this is most definitely–"

 _"We don't have time for this! Get back to the void immediately!"_ Sonic looks back behind him to see that the horde of robots now race along the ground, heading straight for him, only a few seconds away. Not wasting any time with theatrics this time, he pulls out his old Sapphire and takes off running, just before the robots all pass over the wreck of the first three. Just as before, they slowly gain on Sonic, despite his best effort to keep ahead. They draw closer and closer as he becomes cloaked in the sparking blue light of the Sapphire. Then, with a flash and a loud bang, Sonic disappears into a newly-formed rift, and the swarm hastily divides and arcs around it, aware of its possible dangers.

—–—

"There it is." Pushing a leafy branch out of his way, Zero points down to a metallic building a short distance forward and below. "Robotnik's base."

Amy answers, "No doubt. So what's our plan? We can't just break in there, can we?"

"I…I suppose I hadn't thought of that." He takes a few moments to study the front door is guarded by badniks. But after a moment, what appeared to be part of the back wall slides open, and a motobug wheels out. The wall closes behind it. "Bingo! Back door, that's our way in. We get a bit closer, and then follow one of the robots in next time they come."

"What if they only come out?"

"Then…then we still wait near the door, and we jump in as soon as the door opens. We'll have to destroy it quickly, before it can sound any alarm."

"Snooping around, are we?" Zero and Amy look behind them, startled to see Robotnik, piloting a giant egg-shaped mech. It wears a long black cape, and holds a hammer, proportionately the right size to be a gavel. With its other hand, it reaches out to grab Amy.

"Let me go, you creep!" She struggles to free herself.

"Ha! You're coming with me! And you…" He turns to face Zero. "You had best stay out of my way. I have business with Sonic."

Amy cries out, "Zero, help me!" Before Zero can say a word, the mech jets into the air, and flies back towards the base.

Janice immediately comments, _"Good. Now, without your little distraction, you can get back to work."_

"Not a chance. I'm going to save Amy, and there's nothing you can say or do to stop me."

She doesn't bother arguing the point. _"Just be quick about it."_

—–—

Zero lays himself flat against a metallic wall. "Come on…come on…" Finally, he gets his chance as a part of the wall next to him slides open. Without hesitation, he dives into the opening, and a loud crash can be heard. Inside, he has already made quick work of the motobug that was about to emerge.

"Alright, I'm in. Now to find the dungeon in this wretched place."

—–—

 **EGG JUSTICE**

Zero has arrived in the dungeon. There are cell blocks all around, most of them empty. But one of them is occupied by Amy. "Amy!"

"Zero! You made it!"

"Hang on, let me break you out of there." He grabs hold of two of the cell bars, and heaves.

"That's never going to–" She cuts off as the bars bend to his will with a loud clang. A few moments later, the entire frame is torn from the wall. He throws it off to the side. "Wow…you're very strong."

"Oh, you mean that? That wasn't too hard. You know, one time I had to–"

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the little sneak from before? I must say, I'm impressed." Robotnik is ready in his mech to fight.

"Hardly a compliment, coming from a lowlife like you. I would have hoped that by this time, psychos like you would be a thing of the past. But I guess I was mistaken."

"No, I mean it. You did away with every last robot you came across like it was nothing. And the way you just ripped the bars out of the prison cell…you are clearly quite powerful. I could certainly use an ally like you. How would you like to join me?"

"You must be even more mad than I first thought. I would never trust a Robotnik."

"Very well. Then I will do away with you here!" He taps at the controls, and the mech swings its gavel down at Zero.

He doesn't have nearly enough time to react. He holds his arms up as if to shield himself. The Sapphire in his hand begins glow brilliantly, and a strange sound can be heard, almost as if the entire world were decelerating. Zero peeks up to see that the hammer now swings down at a practical snail's pace. Everything moves unbelievably slowly all around him. He looks into his glowing Sapphire. "Time Control…"

Janice speaks in his head, _"That is correct. As I suspected, you have acquired the power to manipulate microtime. You have slowed down the mech. But there is so much more that you can do. In time, you may yet learn to take certain individual objects backwards in time while the rest of the world progresses normally. This is only the first step."_

The hammer has almost reached Zero. He casually steps out of its way, grabs its handle, rips it out of the mech's hand, and tosses it aside. Then he hops onto the mech's thick arm, and from there delivers a spin attack on the cockpit. The Sapphire ceases glowing just as he impacts, and the entire mech is sent reeling back a few steps.

"What!? What just happened!?"

"Instead of explaining, how about I just show you again? Time Control!" He lifts the Sapphire into the air as he shouts the words. But nothing happens. "What!?"

Robotnik smirks and chuckles, and takes advantage of the opportunity by grabbing Zero with both of the mech's hands. He struggles to free himself, to no avail. "Your time is done, hedgehog. You never stood a chance." The hands crush in harder, and Zero grimaces at the pain.

"Let him go, creep!" Amy charges at the mech, holding its discarded hammer high above her head. Although it was small for the mech, it is almost as tall as she is.

Robotnik laughs. "Ha ha ha! And what do you think you could possibly do with _that_?"

She lets out a cry as she swings the hammer down on the mech's elbow joint, shattering the entire arm to pieces. Zero is dropped to the ground. "Now, let's finish this guy off!"

"Right!" Immediately, Zero delivers an attack right at the robot's center of mass, sending it crashing to the floor. Amy is ready right next to where the head-cockpit lands. She swings the hammer right at the cockpit, cracking the glass and knocking the egg-mobile out of the mech. It lifts into the air immediately.

"Don't think that you've won yet, hedgehogs. I have a backup plan! Oh Robo Sonic! Come here, please!" A hedgehog android jets into the room, but this one is different. It is quite a bit larger than a normal hedgehog. About half of it is painted black, while the rest is unpainted, remaining a shiny metallic grey. Its eyes, shaped much more similarly to Sonic's, are completely yellow, with no pupils. Its hands are extremely blocky, and appear to have jets coming out of their wrists. It has three large spikes coming out of the back of its head, grouped near the top, and two more very small ones near the bottom. In one hand, it holds the Temporal Sapphire. "Take care of these pesky intruders, would you? And be sure to use some of your new power."

Zero steps forward to fight. "You should stay back, Amy. That gem is dangerous."

"That robot's no laughing matter, either. He looks like a new model of the one that captured me before."

"I can handle this." Zero gets into a battle-ready stance. Robotnik laughs as he flies away. Zero runs in to attack the robot.

Wordlessly, Robo Sonic raises the Sapphire into the air. It begins glow, and Zero watches in horror as his own movements slow to a stop. The robot swiftly jets in for a blow across Zero's face, just as time resumes normally, sending him flying back. He quickly gets up, and wipes off the corner of his mouth. "Whew, this one _is_ tough." He pulls his own Sapphire out. "Let's try this again." Once, more, he charges at Robo Sonic as Robo Sonic charges at him. They each hold up their Sapphire, and each of them glows. Just as the two fighters come within inches of each other, both of their movements slow drastically. They stare each other in the eye for several long moments. Then time once more returns, and they both strike each other with equal strength, sending them back apart from each other.

Robo Sonic stands back up with ease. Zero struggles to his feet, tiring quickly. Each of them holds up their Sapphire and tries the same thing again. But this time, as Robo Sonic speeds towards Zero, its path is met by a giant swinging hammer. After flying through the air, it smashes into the wall behind it. It collapses to the ground, riddled with cracks and sparks, clearly destroyed beyond recovery.

Zero looks to Amy with an expression appearing both impressed and very surprised. She responds, mocking nonchalantly, "Oh, you mean that? That wasn't too hard." He continues to stare at her. "It's not like you were getting anywhere yourself. That fight would've dragged on _forever_. But…I never got to thank you before…for rescuing me."

"Rescuing you? You've saved my life twice in the past ten minutes. That's…quite a swing you have with that hammer."

She smiles at the compliment. "I think I'm going to keep it. I might have to paint it a different color, though…"

Zero walks over to where Robo Sonic lays. He rips the Sapphire from its hand. "I'll be taking that." He holds one in each hand, and looks deeply into each of them in turn. Without turning around, he speaks, "Amy…I have to leave now. And I…I may not ever…"

"You may not ever what?"

He turns back in her direction, but still stares deeply into his gems. "I've only just met you, but somehow I feel the need to tell you everything. I've never felt that way about anyone before."

"Oh…what do you want to tell me?"

"I wouldn't expect you to believe me."

"The world's a big place, and I've seen lots of it. Try me."

He takes a deep breath. And then he begins. "I may not ever see you again, because I'm a time-traveller from thousands of years in the past, here to save the entire universe from destruction. These gems are how I can do that. And now, I have to leave to some other time so that I can get the next one."

She is silent for a moment. "…I believe you. And I believe _in_ you. Go save the universe."

He smiles, and blushes a bit. "Thank you." He prepares himself to open the next rift. "Time Control!" The swirling blue portal opens before him. He prepares to jump in, but then stops, a thought suddenly coming to his mind. He turns back to Amy. "Amy, I…I know it sounds silly, and I can't expect you to…well…I want to ask you…" Whatever he was thinking before, he seems to have changed his mind. Instead, he finishes, "Please don't forget about me."

Amy smiles, and answers a completely different question. "I appreciate the thought, Zero. But you know I can't go with you. I'm never giving up on Sonic. Not for anything. But I won't forget about you either, if you really are concerned about that."

"What!? No, I didn't say–"

"I knew what you meant. In all honesty, you're not that hard to read. But maybe that's what happens when you don't try to have many friends."

He sighs, his hasty charade seen right through. "I understand. I expected as much." He is silent for another moment. "Amy…you are kind on the inside and strong on the outside. Sonic is a lucky guy. And if…if I might offer some advice…I don't think Sonic is the type to care for the strict and proper. You need to relax. Let your hair down. Don't dress so…formally. I think Sonic would like that."

Now it's Amy's turn to blush. "Thank you. I'll keep that in mind. And…if I might offer some advice of my own…some people may be selfish, and I can tell that you've seen that for yourself…but they're basically good. I don't think that you believe that. That's because you have to get to know them first. If you don't make the effort to make friends, then you'll never have any. Whether or not you'll be alone in your life all depends on how hard you try for it."

He seems to deeply ponder on this. "I…I'll keep that in mind. Thank you…for everything." He turns to leave.

"Zero, wait!" He looks back. "We _will_ see each other again. I'm sure of it."

He gives her one last smile. "I hope so. Goodbye, Amy." This time, he really does leap into the portal, as Amy watches with a mixture of happiness and sorrow.

—–—

A cylindrical pod with translucent yellow glass rises up around the deactivated Robo Sonic. Robotnik's voice speaks, "Project Metal Sonic is now on hold. I have new plans to attend to." As he walks away from the pod, he zips on a new shirt, a more familiar solid red with white stripes reaching around from the back to the front, each ending at a rectangular yellow protrusion.

On the opposite side of the room, the other failed Sonic robot, Metal Sonic, floats deactivated in a similar pod to Robo Sonic's. But in the far corner of the room, where Robotnik walks to, an entirely different robot stands atop a metal platform. It is quite tall, with most of its mass near its top, and with long legs. It has a yellow visor-like structure above its dull green eyes. Instead of hands, it has one large cannon attached to the end of each arm. It is painted black, with white trim. On one side of its chest area are painted the numbers "101."

Robotnik takes the goggles he now wears over his forehead, and draws them over his eyes. He begins working on the robot. "Finally, I understand. I have been unable to defeat Sonic because I've been thinking too small! But now, thanks to those ruins I found, I can awaken a creature truly powerful enough to help me take over the world. Only then can I gain the power I seek…" Suddenly, the robot's green eyes light up. "Ah ha! It's awake! My most advanced robot ever! Beta, as your creator and master, I hereby command you to begin training immediately! If I find your skills to be adequate enough, I may allow you to serve aboard my Egg Carrier once it is completed. If they aren't, I'll send you to the scrap heap!"

"YES, DOCTOR ROBOTNIK."

"Robotnik…no. Robotnik is too…small. I need a name which will be remembered for the rest of time! Henceforward, I shall be known as _Doctor Eggman_!"

"YES, DOCTOR EGGMAN."

Eggman begins to laugh maniacally as the scene begins to pan outwards, eventually revealing the jungle beyond the cliffs of the Mystic Ruins, the hiding place of the soon-to-be-launched Egg Carrier.

—–—

 **The Void**

Sonic dashes out of the rift he created, and skids to a stop, panting. He immediately pulls out the blue Chaos Emerald and tosses out in front of him. After bouncing a few times, it comes to a stop beneath the floating orb of light that is Janice. "There's your ' _Sapphire_ '. Doesn't look quite right, does it?"

"…Is this some kind of _joke_?"

"I'm beginning to wonder the same thing myself. All you've ever done since I started this mission is make mistakes and hide things from us. I'm beginning to wonder just how much I can actually trust you."

She is silent for a moment. "…I believe I understand my mistake. This is definitely a Chaos Emerald."

He responds sarcastically, "Oh, really? I just wasn't quite sure."

"I grow tired of your unending insolence. If you don't wish to be a part of this team, I can send you back right now. Just say the word."

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's really going on here."

"…It seems that you are begging me to teach you a lesson. Though it would be a shame if I were to injure you."

Sonic gets into a fighting stance. "I wouldn't be too worried about that if I were you."

"Very well. I will fight you. And when I defeat you, you will stop questioning me and start following your orders." Immediately, the orb of light begins to glow more brightly as it begins to take on a humanoid shape. The light releases, revealing a form similar to that of Chronos. The body shape is taller and more feminine. The face appears less like a beast and more like a human. The butterfly wings are larger, more pronounced, and less torn. "I promise you, you are making a mistake."

"Are you kidding? This'll be fun!" He leaps in for the first attack.

—–—

 **Dry Desert Zone**

Silver picks up the Sapphire from the dry sand in front of him. He appears to be deep inside of some sort of desert ruins. "That wasn't too hard. But those creatures and robots being sent by Chronos are getting tougher." He speaks directly into the Sapphire. "Janice, I'm on my way back." He waits, but receives no answer. "Janice? Janice, can you hear me?" Still nothing. "Hm…I guess she's busy. What am I going to do!? What if I'm stuck here!?"

He sits down and begins pondering. "Alright, let's just calm down. I can make rifts on my own, it's just Janice who directs them. If I were going to another time…I would have no idea how to direct the rift to go where I want it to. But I just need to get back to The Void. Outside of time. I've already been there. It shouldn't be too hard to find my way back there…I hope. I suppose I'd better try that, then. No use waiting around here."

He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. He begins to channel his power through the Sapphire. In a dramatic motion, he attempts to tear open the very space in front of him. A space-time rift opens before him. "So far, so good." He lifts himself in. He's shocked at what he sees on the other side.

Sonic, appearing slightly battle-worn, cheers in triumph, "Oh yeah, I'm awesome! No one can beat Sonic the Hedgehog, not even an extra-dimensional time lord!"

At his feet, a dim light in the shape of Janice's humanoid form condenses back into a small orb, as she mutters, "What have I done? I've only made his ego even larger…"

Silver shouts in anger, "What did you do!?" Without waiting for an answer, he launches a psychic wave at Sonic. Taken by surprise, Sonic is hit, and sent flying back.

Janice weakly mutters, "Silver, no…" But he doesn't hear her.

"Why did you attack Janice!?"

Sonic gets back up. "Well technically, she–"

"Answer me!"

"You have it all wrong, this–"

He becomes trapped in Silver's psychic grasp. "I should have guesses that you were a traitor. Why else would you have pretended to know me when I've never met you before?" Sonic struggles to free himself. "It's no use resisting. I can be done with you right now. Take th–"

"Silver, stop!" Just as Silver prepares to violently throw Sonic, he finds his arms forcibly restrained to his sides. Zero has grabbed him, and holds him tightly. Silver having lost his concentration, Sonic drops to the floor. "Sonic may be a fool, but he's no traitor!" After a moment of struggling, Silver calms down. "I'm going to let you go now, and then Sonic is going to tell us _exactly_ what's going on, alright?" After a moment, Silver nods. Zero lets go and steps back. "Sonic?"

"After a little disagreement, _Janice_ challenged _me_ to a fight. And I won. I'd say that makes me the new leader of this team!"

"Ha! You, a leader? You couldn't lead your way out of a paper bag!"

"He is right. About the fight, anyways." The Janice orb rises and gains in brightness. "I agreed to fight him, hoping to teach him a lesson. The plan backfired, I'm afraid. But that does _not_ make you a leader."

Zero looks to Silver. "You see? All just a misunderstanding."

"But because I lost the fight," she continues, "I am obliged to respect your wishes. I must share something with you and Silver that I have kept hidden, that I only told to Zero. I know Chronos so well because I was his apprentice. You must know that I have personal investment in this mission, because I will become the new lord of time once Chronos is defeated. I am sorry if I have grown too emotional because of this fact. I hope to remain more objective in the future. But…we are wasting time here. We should continue the mission immediately. Time wears thin. If we do not grow more efficient in our methods, we will not get all of the Sapphires in time. That being said…I have a special mission for you, Sonic. I saw the way you fight. Even without thinking about it, you draw power from the Chaos Emeralds. And I'm sure that goes the same for all three of you. What you found in your last journey was indeed a Chaos Emerald, but _before_ the time that the Chaos Emeralds ever existed."

"Before they existed? How is that even possible?"

"Normally, it isn't. Chaos Emeralds naturally go where they are needed, so to have one missing from its natural place in time could have catastrophic results. I believe that these…temporally displaced Chaos Emeralds are an unforeseen side effect of the space-time rift problem. Rifts are randomly forming near them or growing to encompass them, sending them into the wrong time." Both Sonic and Zero nod in affirmation of this fact, each pulling out the Chaos Emerald that came to them through a rift. "This temporal displacement is why I mistook this one for a Sapphire, because it was at a time where Chaos Emeralds are not supposed to be. For the sake of the preservation of the timeline, these displaced Emeralds must be removed, and at some point returned to their proper places. If we succeed in our mission, but ruin the timeline in the process, then the whole purpose is defeated. But before that happens, I see no reason why you three shouldn't use their power to your advantage. So I hereby appoint to you, Sonic, the assignment of collecting the temporally-displaced Chaos Emeralds, while Silver and Zero continue to collect Sapphires. If we work quickly enough, we should still have enough time to do both. And I already have the next one located for you. I suggest you get going right away."

"You got it. Let's get those Emeralds."

"I already have the next one located. You are free to leave."

Just as usual, Sonic tosses his Sapphire into the air before catching it again, then takes off at high speed. Within moments, he is gone behind the newest rift.

"Silver, I have your next Sapphire ready as well."

"Right." Silver focuses his energy and tears open his own rift. But before he goes, Zero stops him.

"Silver…I wanted to apologize for grabbing you so…brusquely, earlier." Once again, he extends his hand. "I do hope you'll forgive me."

Silver stays right where he is. "You did what you had to." He turns to leave.

"I'm going to keep trying, you know. Every time we meet here like this, I'm going to try again. A good person today taught me…I won't ever have any friends, unless I make the effort to make some. And I want you to be my friend."

Silver is quiet for a moment. "…Whatever." He lifts himself into the rift.

Zero thinks on that for a while. Finally, Janice questions, "Zero? The next Sapphire is ready for you."

"…I'm ready."

"Then you can go."

He nods. "Time…Control." His own rift opens before him. Without any hesitation, he leaps in.

 **To be Continued…**


	9. S0 E5: In Due Time…

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 5**

 **Speed of Time, Part 5: In Due Time…**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **Several successful missions later…**

 **The Void**

"I have good news, everyone." It is Janice who speaks. "There are only a few Sapphires left, and just one Chaos Emerald. We are making good time. Two more missions each, and we will be ready to fight Chronos."

Sonic objects, "But that only gives us six Chaos Emeralds!"

"As far as I can tell, that's all there is. You'll have to make do. The Sapphires are more important anyways. Silver, you will be leaving next. Your destination is approximately 60 years into your own future. I believe that it is, chronologically, the final Sapphire. Normally, after the trouble that nearly came of Sonic's earlier mission, I would have you be careful of interfering too heavily in the timeline. But in this case, you shouldn't concern yourself too much with it. Actions you take won't have any consequence on yourself or the others. Are you ready?"

He nods, and pulls out a Sapphire. With almost no effort, he waves a rift open in front of him. As he's about to go in, Zero calls from behind him, "Good luck!"

Somewhat reluctantly, he responds, "Yeah…you too." With that, he goes in.

—–—

 **Floating Isle Zone**

Silver walks along the side of a steep cliff. On the other side is nothing but sky. From a higher angle, the ocean can be seen far, far below. Janice speaks in his head, _"I'm having trouble pinpointing the exact location of the Sapphire. I believe that it may be moving. You may have to track it down yourself."_

"Track it down?" He looks inwards, towards the center of the forested island. "This is a pretty big island."

 _"I have confidence in your abilities. It shouldn't be a problem for you."_

"Janice…how is this island floating? There's no psychic energy holding it up….but there's no technology doing it either. How is that possible?"

" _You're a time-travelling hedgehog with extra-sensory perception, and you're concerned about a floating hunk of rock? I think you have more important things to worry about."_

"Right."

—–—

"Maybe I can get a better view from up here." Silver begins climbing a large flight of stairs. "This structure must be ancient…certainly from long before Sonic's time. It's incredible that it's still standing."

 _"It was built for a very specific purpose. Perhaps…perhaps a visit with the Master Emerald will do you well."_

"Did you say _Master_ Emerald? I thought that was only a myth!"

 _"With an objective view over all of time…you find that most myths are, in fact, based in reality. Was not the story of the original Controller just a myth to you? Yet now, you have met him in person. Or… do you still not believe me?"_

"No, it's not that, I just…one day, I'm attacked by a stranger as a child. Then the guy disappears, never seen or heard from since. Now, almost ten years later, the same guy suddenly comes back, and you start telling me that he's some living legend. How could I believe that?"

 _"I find your lack of faith…disturbing. I have been wrong many times before. But I can assure you that I am right about this. Zero is the original Controller."_

"He's been nothing but kind since this whole thing started. I'm just so confused… And then there's Sonic. He always gets so uncomfortable whenever I'm around him."

 _"In his defense, you did just recently attack him."_

"Even before that. He acted like…like I had let something bad happen to him, but he knew it wasn't my fault. I just don't get it…"

 _"You shouldn't worry about it now. You're almost at the top."_ Sure enough, Silver has just a few steps left in front of him. He mounts the top, onto a large circular platform. In the center lies a massive green gem, the Master Emerald.

"No way…" He runs up to it and puts a hand on it. "I never would have imagined that it would be this big! Or this beautiful…" He stares deeply into it. And he sees something inside. Although it is difficult to see through the shiny green material, a scene plays out inside. There is a blurry humanoid figure with butterfly wings. "Is that…Chronos? It looks a little tall…"

 _"Silver? What's going on?"_

He ignores her. In the Emerald, the figure appears to be engaged in a fight. It blocks a blow from a blue blur. It becomes cloaked in an aqua-colored energy, but it dispels the energy with one dramatic movement. Then it waves its hand, and a space-time rift which is not blue, but blood red, forms. Three hedgehogs—one blue, one green, and one silvery-white—are flung into the red rift, which closes behind them. The scene dissolves, leaving only the Emerald. "I…I don't understand. What does this mean?"

 _"Silver, I have good news and bad news. I've figured out where the Sapphire is."_

"If that's the good news…what's the bad news?"

 _"It's right behind you."_

"Wha–" Silver starts to turn around, but is suddenly locked in place, enveloped in an aqua-colored light.

A gruff, old voice speaks from behind him, "I'm sorry Silver, but I cannot have you getting in my way here. I know that you need the Sapphire. Give me a moment with it, and I'll gladly hand it over. I know how important this mission is."

Silver struggles to free himself from the man's psychic grasp. "What do you want with the Sapphire!? Who are you!?"

"Both fair questions. But you will not like the answers very much. I need the Sapphire…in order to destroy the Chaos Emeralds."

"What!?"

"I said that you wouldn't like it. And as for who I am…" he slowly steps into Silver's field of vision. "…I am you." He speaks the truth. Although he clearly appears much older, with thinner, wispier fur, and somewhat wrinkled skin, he is, without a doubt, Silver. "You want to say that it's impossible. But you know that that isn't at all true. You just don't want to accept it."

Young Silver is speechless. Several times, he tries to say something, but no cohesive words come out. Finally, he manages to ask, "How…why…why would I want to destroy the Chaos Emeralds? It's my sworn duty to protect them!"

"Oh, how naive I was. It's not our duty to protect the _Emeralds_. It's our duty to protect _the world_. And that's exactly what I'm doing."

"The Chaos Emeralds exist to bring balance to this world! What could you possibly gain by destroying them!?"

"I don't expect you to understand. But one day, you will." Older Silver passes by the still-trapped younger one, up to the Master Emerald. "The Master Emerald was created as a balance system to the Chaos Emeralds. It can completely nullify their power. But with the added power of a Temporal Sapphire…it can destroy them."

"Stop! You can't!"

"But I must." He lifts out his hand, and the seven Chaos Emeralds appear, circling around him. The circle expands and rises until the Emeralds come to rest on the seven pillars that surround the Master Emerald shrine.

"This…this is why I'm the last Controller…isn't it?"

"That is correct. Better that you come to terms with that now than when you're in my position." He turns back to the Emerald. He raises his arms and begins to chant, "The servers are…the seven Chaos. Chaos is power…power is enriched by the heart!"

"You have to stop this! Please, before it's too late!"

"There is no other time I can do this! Each Sapphire only exists in its timeframe for a brief time, and this one's time is almost up! There will never be another one! This is my only chance to do this!" He finishes the chant, "The Controller is the one that unifies the Chaos!" The Master Emerald slowly floats into the air, spinning rapidly and glowing brilliantly. "Only you can do this! Stop the Chaos Emeralds!" Seven arcs of brilliant blue electricity spark from the Master Emerald, each one striking a Chaos Emerald. The Master Emerald begins to glow blindingly bright. It is at this point that Older Silver places the Temporal Sapphire above the Master Emerald. The arcs of energy suddenly change direction, striking the Sapphire and passing through it before each one reaches its Emerald. As the energy passes through the Sapphire, it changes from a bright cyan-blue to a deep, dark blue. The already-dulled Chaos Emeralds begin to vibrate violently upon being hit.

"No!"

First, the red one shatters, then the purple one an instant later. In a few moments, the cyan Emerald shatters, followed by the blue Emerald. Each sound might be like nails on a chalkboard for how young Silver reacts to them. Each one causes him to shudder and flinch. The green Emerald shatters. Then the yellow one. Only the white Emerald remains, on the pedestal straight across from the stairway leading to the top of the shrine. It rumbles more violently than any of the other Emeralds, as if trying to cling on to its own life. It begins to crack and splinter, but still it remains intact. Then it shatters into thousands of particles of fine, sparkling dust. The Master Emerald and Temporal Sapphire both clatter to the ground, their job completed.

Young Silver breaks into tears as the dust settles all around him. "No! _No!_ " He is released from his older self's grasp, and he drops to his hands and knees. "Those Emeralds…were my whole life…and you just destroyed them…" He sobs for another moment. Suddenly, he outbursts, "How could you!?" He stands up and throws out his open and as if to psychically shove the other one off the side of the monument. But older Silver stands on the other side, directing his own hand in the same manner. The aqua patterns on their gloves burn brightly, but neither of them move an inch, their powers counteracting each other.

"I know you're upset. But you can't let this get in the way of your mission." He indicates the Sapphire lying on the floor with his free hand. "The Sapphire is yours, just like I promised."

"Why should I trust you?"

He doesn't answer the question, but instead continues, "You don't have to worry about the Master Emerald. It draws its power from the Chaos Emeralds. Soon, it will be dull and grey." Young Silver's only answer is to increase the force of his push. The older one pushes harder in turn. "I know that this is difficult for you to understand. Just think of it like this. You now know that this has a chance of happening. When the time comes for you to make this decision, you can keep in mind the choice that I made. You can choose to trust my judgement. Or you can choose to reject it. Your future is for you to decide, not me. This hasn't happened for you yet, and you can stop it if you so choose. I just couldn't have you stopping me."

Young Silver cleary thinks deeply about these claims. His force seems to let up a bit. Then he drops his hand to his side. Older Silver does the same. Still, young Silver seems unsure of what to do. He merely stands there, staring at the floor. But he is forced to look up as his older self presents the Sapphire right in front of his face. "Go on. Take it." Hesitantly, he does. Then, he resumes his silence. "Shouldn't you be going now?"

"…Is this really what I should do? How could there not be another option?"

"When I was faced with this choice…I did want another way out. Do you really think that it was my first choice to destroy the Chaos Emeralds?" He shakes his head. "No. I tried. I couldn't find another way. But maybe, with this knowledge, you _can._ But for now, you have more important things to worry about. You have 60 years to think about it."

"You…you know about what I'm doing. Because you've done it before. Is…is there anything that I should know now? Before it's too late?"

"Hmm…no, I shouldn't tell you. Foreknowledge of the events soon to come could very well make things irreparably worse. It's important that you learn everything at the right time. I guess just…watch your back…and trust your friends."

"Wait, but doesn't watching my back mean that my friends–" He stops has he realizes that his older self has walked away, up to the already-dulling Master Emerald. "Hey, wait!"

Older Silver puts his hand on the Emerald. "This will be the final time…"

"The final time for what?"

"Chaos Control!" In a flash of blue light, he disappears, leaving the Emerald behind.

"Wait, don't go!" It's already far too late.

" _Hurry up, Silver,"_ Janice speaks into his head. _"Sonic and Zero are already back."_

"Right. I'm on my way." He uses the new Sapphire to open the space before him, creating a new rift. He takes one last look back at the dulling green gem lying in the center of the monument. He sighs, before lifting himself into the portal he had created.

—–—

 **The Void**

Zero hops out of his rift and into the void, sweating profusely. He wipes his brow. "I'm beginning to question… …the judgement of these inanimate objects. A volcano… …why would a Sapphire hide itself in a volcano!?"

Sonic argues, "Sounds like you're the lucky one. The last Chaos Emerald was at the bottom of the ocean in the middle of an archipelago of tropical islands. What's the point of a beach when it's ruined by almost drowning?"

Zero eyes him oddly, but doesn't respond. A moment later, another rift opens as Silver arrives. Zero jokingly greets, "Hey. What took you so long?" Sonic takes on a distant look.

Silver's own voice echoes in his head, _"…trust your friends."_ He silently walks up to Zero. And then, he extends his hand.

Zero seems quite surprised. "What's this? A change of heart?"

"Let's just say…I've decided to start thinking a little more about my future."

Zero happily takes the hand, and as they shake, they look each other in the eye as friends for the first time. "Does this mean that you believe now? That I never attacked you?"

"Maybe you did. Maybe you had a good reason, or maybe you just forgot about it. But what ever happened, I believe that you don't believe it ever happened. And that's good enough for me." He turns to Sonic next. "I think that you and I need to be properly introduced as well. The last few times didn't go so well." He extends his hand once more.

"Umm…yeah, sure." He takes the hand, but still seems as distracted as usual when Silver is around.

"Is there something you would like to tell me?"

"…No. I'm just…glad you're doing alright."

The Janice orb speaks, "Good, we're all friends now. That will make the final battle that much easier. Are we ready to get back to work, then?"

Zero takes a slight look of doubt at Sonic, but they all nod.

"Very good. Silver, you–" She is cut off as the entire void around them begins to shake violently. The myriad rifts littering the area all begin to grow at a rapid rate.

Sonic shouts, "Hey, what's going on here!?" The shaking continues.

When everything calms down, the hedgehogs are all crouching on the floor, though Janice seems unfazed. Behind her, what was once a large cluster of rifts has merged into one giant vortex of blue, easily the size of a small building.

Silver is the first to get up. "What just happened?"

"It is as I feared. We are running out of time. We have to get this mission finished, now!"

Zero objects, "Wait, I thought you said that–"

"I know what I said. Things have changed. If we do not hurry, your universe will not exist for much longer. Silver, get going!"

Understanding the urgency, Silver opens a new rift and heads right in.

"Sonic, you're next, and remember that you're going after a Sapphire, not an Emerald. Non-interference is out the window at this point, do everything necessary to get that Sapphire."

Skipping the usual stylistic toss, Sonic takes off running, and soon disappears behind his own rift.

—–—

 **Island Base Zone**

Sonic takes a look around. He appears to be in the courtyard walls of some sort of military compound. The sound of the ocean can be heard just on the other side. "This seems like a pretty peaceful place." Suddenly, an alarm siren begins to wail. Red lights are cast from some distance away, flooding the area. "Well, so much for that." He suddenly dives out of the way of a round of gunfire. The source was a familiar robot, a G.U.N. Beetle armed sentry drone. Sonic makes quick work of it with a spin attack.

He lands on the ground in front of the robot wreck. He shakes his head. "I don't imagine this'll turn out very well. It was pretty lame last time G.U.N. started coming after me. Oh well." He takes off into the core of the base, the alarms still blaring.

—–—

Sonic has made it deep inside the base. Red lights still flash, but the sound of the alarm is somewhat distant and muffled. "It's quiet. Too quiet…"

A deep, familiar voice speaks calmly from behind him, "I should have known that you would have something to do with this."

Sonic turns around to see none other than Shadow the Hedgehog. "Well, if it isn't Shadow. It's been awhile, hasn't it? The time kind of blurs together when you're saving the world so much and all." Shadow doesn't answer, but merely looks Sonic over, as if confirming a theory. "Oh, I get it." He takes a fighting stance. "You're here to stop me. Well, we'll just have to see about that."

"Wrong." Sonic relaxes a bit, seeming a bit perplexed. "G.U.N. and I are no longer involved."

"Since when?"

"Since five minutes ago. Let's just say this isn't the place for me."

"Hate to say this, but I'm not really interested in your personal problems right now. I'm looking for a long blue Sapphire, and it's very important."

Shadow pulls out a glittering blue gem. "Oh, you mean like this one?"

"Yes, that's it! Hand it over!"

"No. I would never trust a _fool_ like you with this."

Sonic is taken aback by the sudden yet familiar insult."Look, I don't know where this is coming from all of a sudden, but if I don't get that Emerald soon, then the party's over. No more universe. Now give me the Sapphire so I can get out of this drag of a place."

"Sonic…do you even realize that you're breaking and entering into a top-secret military base?"

"Yeah, so?"

"So, it would be difficult to commit much more serious of a crime. If you're caught, you shouldn't expect a trial. You should expect to be shot on sight. But you don't even care. I heard that you had changed. But I never would have expected this. I'm not even talking to the same person who helped me fight the Black Arms. Everything about you, your thoughts, your mannerisms, even your voice has changed. What happened to you?"

Sonic is silent for a long moment. Then he bursts out laughing. "Ha ha ha! That's a good one, Shadow. You really had me going there for a minute. I didn't think you were the type to tell jokes."

"Don't you get it!?" He's grown very angry. "Not everything is a joke! That's exactly your problem! You think that the entire world is some joke, some _game_! The entire world could collapse around you, and you wouldn't care as long as you could still have your _fun_!"

"Don't be ridiculous! I'm trying to save the world right now, and you certainly aren't helping!"

"So tell me, whatever it is that you're doing now, how did you make the decision to do it? Was it about protecting the places, the people that you care about? Or did it just sound like fun?"

Sonic thinks back to his response to Janice's initial invitation. _"_ _A time-travelling adventure to stop an evil ruler from ending the universe? Sounds like fun."_ Despite this, Sonic shakes his head. "This is silly. I've always made sure to enjoy whatever I'm doing. You know me. What you see is what you get. Just a guy that loves adventure." Even as he says it, he doesn't quite seem to believe it.

"True, you've always made the best of it. But that was never your motivation. Now it seems that you judge everything by how much you'll enjoy it, as if you're not sure how much time you have left. And let's face it. Adventure stopped being enough for you a long time ago. You've had to move on to ' _better_ ' things. More dangerous and with less to learn about the world and about yourself. You're missing all of the passion and pride that used to define you. It's a shame. I was beginning to think of you as a sort of…rival. But now, I understand." He puts special emphasis on the next few words. "You're not even good enough to be my _copy_."

Sonic moves as if to say something, perhaps some witty response that would allow him to let the insult roll past him. But he stops, as something stirs deep within him.

"That's right. Just think about that. Think about how it makes you feel. About how much you care. Or else, ignore it, and prove to me that you really don't care. About anything. About your own life, about the world you live in. It hurts, doesn't it? To be so insulted by someone you consider an equal? Or a friend, perhaps? That would be even worse. We hardly knew each other last time I spoke those words, and even then you hardly even let me finish saying them. So what are you going to do about it now? Are you–"

Shadow cuts off as Sonic mutters something unintelligible, shutting his eyes and clenching a fist.

"What's that? I couldn't quite hear you. You should–"

"I'LL MAKE YOU EAT THOSE WORDS!" With a changed voice full of passion and fury, Sonic lets out a cry as he moves in to attack Shadow.

Shadow takes a step back as he bobs out of the way of the first punch. Sonic throws another punch with the opposite fist, which Shadow again steps back and ducks around. They continue in this way, Sonic throwing punch after punch, and Shadow slowly moving backwards to avoid them. As this happens, Shadow comments, "Now that's something the old Sonic would have said. Maybe you really do care. Or maybe, you're just trying to fool me so you can get this gem. After all, what do you care about how I'll react, as long as you get your instant gratification? Typical of the new you."

"Shut up!" Sonic puts all of his force behind one big punch. Shadow steps back to avoid like the others, but his foot is stopped as it hits the wall behind him. He is hit by the full force of Sonic's blow, sending his head snapping to the side.

Sonic pants heavily, but seems to be calming down. Shadow slowly turns his head back to face Sonic, bearing an intense scowl on his face. Suddenly, he throws a powerful punch of his own, impacting Sonic square in the chest. Sonic is sent flying backwards, impacting the opposite wall with a thud. He collapses to the ground.

Stunned and dazed, Sonic lifts his head, clutching it with one hand and grimacing. Shadow walks up to him. "Put out your hand." Expecting to be helped back up, Sonic does so. Instead, Shadow places the Temporal Sapphire in Sonic's outstretched hand. "Now, get up and go save the universe."

Sonic struggles back up to his feet. Shadow turns around and begins to walk off. "Hold on." Shadow stops. "You're just going to leave now? Just like that?"

"I've done what I set out to do. There's nothing left for me here."

"You planned to snap me out of it from the beginning? Sounds like I'm not the only one who cares."

"Don't get all sentimental on me. This world needs a hero, not a fool. I made sure it got that. Now, I'm leaving."

"Don't go. Come back with me. The team and I could use your help."

"I'm not interested in working on a team. Why do you think I'm leaving G.U.N.?"

"Where will you go?"

Shadow remains silent for a moment. Then he answers, "…Somewhere I can make a difference. On my own." He begins to walk off again.

"Good luck."

He stops one last time. "…You too." Shadow starts walking out, this time for good. Sonic watches as he disappears into the darkness.

 **To be Continued…**


	10. S0 E6: Behind the Times

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 6**

 **Speed of Time, Part 6: Behind the Times**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **Mad Lab Zone**

Zero emerges from a space-time rift, landing onto a patch of grass. Just inches in front of him lies large metal wall.

The voice of Janice speaks to him, _"Do you see the Sapphire?"_

"No, but there's a building right here. It's probably inside."

 _"Then hurry up and get in there."_

Zero seems ready to respond, but then stops, and looks curiously at the wall. He very cautiously begins to step backwards, his face slowly changing from curiosity to concern, and then to fear. As he gets a view of the entire building, he drops to his knees, and then his hands. "No…"

 _"Zero? Zero, what's wrong!?"_

He clutches the dirt and grass with his hands as if unsure that he can even keep his balance on all-fours. His eyes remain firmly locked on the ground beneath him, his face filled with utter dread, as he almost incoherently mutters, "No…I can't do this, I can't. I can't go back in there, not ever again. No, I won't…"

 _"Zero! Snap out of it, what's happening!?"_

Slowly, forcibly, he unclenches his hands. Each movement seeming to drain all of the energy that he has, he slowly manages to rise again. Still very softly, he says, "Janice…can you put me in contact with Silver?"

 _"Um…yes, give me a moment."_ Zero takes a deep breath as he waits, but avoids looking directly at the building in front of him.

After a moment, Silver's voice speaks through the Sapphire, _"Zero? What's going on?"_

"I…I need your help. Would you switch places with me?"

 _"Um…yeah, I guess so. Meet me in The Void."_

Zero takes another deep breath before turning and heading back into the rift that took him here.

Silver already waits on the other side. "Is there something that I should know about where I'm going?"

"It's…it's personal. A part of my past that I don't want to go back to. Does that make sense?"

"Don't worry, I get it. But…if you wanted someone who understands having a troubled past, you should have asked Sonic."

"A troubled past? Sonic?" Almost habitually, he adds, "Sonic is a fool."

"So maybe 'troubled' isn't the right word. But Sonic…there's something that happened to him that he doesn't want to think about. And…I can't help but get the feeling that it has something to do with me." He shakes his head at the thought. "I think that you judge him too harshly. I think that he's a better person than he lets off. Or at least, he was."

Zero thinks back to his encounter with Amy Rose. She had said, _"_ _There's nothing that Sonic does that isn't for the sake of others."_ He seems about to say something, but is interrupted by Janice.

"Enough chatter. We're on a tight timetable here. Get going."

They both answer, "Right!" With a nod towards each other, they each move towards the rift that the other came out of. But right before Zero enters the rift, he turns to Silver and says, "Don't mess up my history too badly, alright? Even if it seems like the right thing to do." Without giving Silver the chance to answer, he hops into the portal.

—–—

Silver takes a good long look at the building in front of him. Now clearly in view, there doesn't seem to be anything of particular note about it. It's a long, metallic, two-story building, with no windows and only one door. "I guess I just go in now." He strolls right up to the door, which makes a strange beeping sound as he gets close to it.

After a moment, a mechanical voice speaks from the door, "Identity not recognized."

Silver merely shrugs, and uses his power to lift up the door, allowing him to walk inside unhindered.

The inside is just as dull as the outside, a hallway with grey metallic walls extending in each direction. Silver chooses a direction and starts on his way.

—–—

Silver has made it to an upstairs area. As he walks down the hallway, he passes a window at regular intervals looking down at a room in the floor below. Some rooms contain tables covered in what appear to be beakers of various chemicals of every imaginable color. Other rooms contain what appear to be stasis pods, or small, empty cages. Still other rooms contain only a single chair, covered in straps and harnesses. "This place just keeps getting creepier." Silver just keeps walking along, keeping a close eye out for the Sapphire.

He stops as he hears a noise from up ahead, the clanking of metal. He runs ahead a few rooms and finds where the sound came from. Through the window to the floor below, a tall, somewhat large man in a lab coat can be seen opening a cage. The sounds coming from the room can be heard clearly. Not noticing Silver watching him, the man begins to speak with a gruff, vaguely familiar voice, "Subject 000, it is time for your next test."

A weak, almost unrecognizable voice responds from within the cage, "I…I can't. I'm not ready for another test… None of us are."

"Now, now, my friend, how am I to help you if you won't help me? Didn't you tell me that you want to learn more of your own potential?"

"I…I won't. Not another test…"

The man begins to raise his voice. "That's quite enough fooling around. You are coming with me right now, even if I have to force you!"

Slowly, carefully, the one called Subject 000 begins to emerge from the cage. He is none other than Zero the Hedgehog. However, his physical state is nothing like what Silver has seen before. He appears thin and weak. He walks with a limp. Even his eyes appear dull and distant. Against his instincts, Silver remains completely silent.

The man continues, "Good, now follow me." He turns to face Silver's direction, underneath which the door to the room must be, and Silver ducks off to the side of the window to avoid being seen. For a few moments, the man's face can be clearly seen. Although he has a full head of hair, he also has a large nose, and a massive mustache. There is no doubt that he is a Robotnik. A tag on the front of his coat reads, "Dr. Gregor Robotnik, Chief Bioengineer." After a moment of walking towards the door, Robotnik stops, realizing that Zero hasn't moved an inch. He turns back and shouts, "What did I just tell you, rat!? Get over here and follow me to the testing chamber!"

Zero stares at the floor. For a moment, he turns his head to look at one of the other cages, then returns to his downwards gaze. Finally, firmly, he states, "No."

"What did you just say!? I have had enough of your insolence, you insignificant worm! You have been this obstinate since the very beginning, that's why I've been working so hard to get rid of you! Now, you've finally given me the reason I need. I promise you that your next test will be the most painful, terrifying event that you have ever experienced in your insignificant life, and it will be the end of it! Now, return to your cage." He turns to the same cage that Zero looked to earlier. "Subject 009, I will be testing you today instead."

All of this time, Zero has been growing angrier and angrier, clenching his fists and barring his teeth. But with Robotnik's last statement, something snapped. His eyes turn suddenly sharp, burning with ferocity, and locked on Robotnik, he shouts, "No! No more tests! No more experiments! You will not hurt me, or anyone else, ever again!" As he speaks, a red aura begins to form around him, and, forgetting his injuries, he begins to stomp slowly towards Robotnik.

Robotnik is taken with fear, putting his hands up as if to protect himself, and slowly walking backwards, away from the raging hedgehog, "Now, 000, let's not be hasty about this. Uh, maybe we can–"

"That isn't my name! I am Zero! And I am not doing anything with you!" His fury reaching its peak, he begins to float into the air, radiating the crimson Chaos energy of his rage. "I'm finished with you!" With his final shout, all of his rage explodes out in a massive red Chaos Blast. Robotnik lets out a scream, which is joined by several others from the cages, as well as one from Silver, who has no chance to avoid the massive explosion that reaches all the way up to where he stands.

—–—

 **Sub-Soleana Zone**

Zero walks through the streets of what must be Silver's home city. But this area is far different from anything that Silver had been seen travelling through. Everything is dim and shaded, improperly discarded garbage litters the streets, and many building entrances appear to be boarded up. Perhaps ten stories above, another tier of roads and walkways can be seen from underneath, with another tier at each regular interval, each one higher appearing to be in a better state of repair. This pattern continues upwards as far as the eye can see. Zero must be on the very bottom level, while Silver only roamed streets towards the top. Space-time rifts are everywhere, showing the progress of time's destruction. _"So strange… This world is so much like how mine once was, and yet so different. Up at the top lies technology like I've never seen, but down here it's so…dismal."_

"Unfortunate, isn't it? The state that these poor people have to live in, despite all the advances in the world around them?" Zero turns with a start to see none other than Silver standing before him. However, he is quite a bit shorter, with less length to his quills, and a higher-pitched voice. "Technologically, this world has achieved more than people in your time could ever have hoped to. But governmentally…there are flaws. Flaws which, in your time, had already been solved. That is because the problems you were meant to solve are of a different nature."

"…Silver?"

For a moment, the hedgehog looks down at his own body, then looks back up and chuckles a bit. "No, I am not your friend Silver. I thought that you might be more comfortable speaking with me in _this_ form."

"I don't understand. Who _are_ you?"

"Well, you see, my name…is Chronos."

"Chronos!?" Zero takes a fighting stance and prepares to attack.

"Please, please, calm down, I thought you were the non-violent one!"

Zero takes a moment to understand what he's doing and relaxes a bit. "You're right. I don't know what came over me. I've been waiting for a chance like this since the very beginning. Let's talk."

"Ah, I was hoping you would say that. Come, walk with me."

Chronos begins to move forward, but Zero stays put. When Chronos looks back at him questioningly, he responds, "Forgive me, I don't like to take orders unless I know what I'm getting into. You seem to know a lot about me, perhaps you understand?"

"Of course, I understand completely. I meant no harm by asking, I merely meant to make you more comfortable. We can stay right here, if that's what you want."

"…I'll walk." And so, they begin walking.

"I suppose we should get down to business now. You've been collecting Temporal Sapphires."

"You've been trying to stop me."

"True enough. What I fail to understand is why. You seem like a nice guy, so what would you want with such power, except to fight me with it?"

Zero seems intrigued at Chronos' relative ignorance. "Look around. Time is falling apart. I'm not going to let that happen."

"Yes, it's a problem I've been dealing with for quite some time now. But removing the Sapphires from their correct places is certainly not helping matters. How many do you have with you right now? Three? Four?"

"Four."

"And now you're after a fifth?" Zero nods. "You do understand that time _can't_ stay together properly with so many in one place, yes? The problem you claim to be solving is only being made worse by your interference."

"So you're claiming…that you are in no way responsible for what's happening?"

"Well, I wouldn't say 'no way,' but I think there's a bit of a misunderstanding going on between us. You think that I'm causing the problem, and I think that you're causing the problem. That is, of course, why I've been sending these creatures and robots after you and your friends, to deter you from this task."

"But that didn't work, and that's why you chose to talk to me now."

"Yes, you are quite perceptive. Now, to get to the point. Give me the Sapphires that you have, and I can use them to fix everything. Right here, right now, right in front of your eyes. No more fighting, no more violence. I can send you home, and you can use everything that you've learned on this adventure to help you rebuild your ruined world. Maybe, by your influence, the people living on this level of the city won't be living such poor lives any longer. All you have to do is hand them over." He holds out his hand with a smile.

Zero stops walking as he ponders on this. "You want me…to give you the Sapphires. The objects which act as your one and only weakness." He sighs and shakes his head. "It's clear that Janice was right. You really can't be reasoned with."

"Janice!? You are working with Janice!? Of course…this explains everything…"

"Let's get one thing clear, Chronos. I'm not giving you anything. Now, you can get out of my way, or I can force you out of it. You know which one I would prefer."

"Look, I don't know what Janice has been telling you, but I can promise you that it's all a lie. You are being deceived, tricked into doing the bidding of a power-hungry psychopath. It's likely that her wishes will destroy your world, not save it. Hold on, I have something to show you, a uh…a sign of goodwill."

"I've had enough of your games, Chronos, and I've wasted enough time as it is."

"Please, I'm still trying to be reasonable here. You don't have to give me anything, just take me to her, give me a chance to talk to her, I can fix all of this!"

"Stop telling me what to do!" Suddenly, Zero lunges at Chronos. Chronos easily steps out of the way.

"If that's how it's going to be…" Chronos steps back and closes his eyes, as he begins to transform. His skin begins to bulge, and finally tear, revealing underneath the woody flesh of the Chronos form that Silver fought. Unlike that form, this one holds a staff with a clock on the top, and its face appears far less beast-like. In a deep, booming voice, he continues "I will destroy you if that's what it takes to put a stop to Janice!"

—–—

 **Mad Lab Zone**

"Hey…" the voice sounds fuzzy and distant. Slowly, Silver begins to return to consciousness. "Hey, are you alright?"

Silver manages to open his eyes to see Zero staring down at him, offering a hand and giving a smile. Silver lets out an involuntary yell as he scrambles up to his feet. He stands in the rubble of what used to be the research lab.

"Whoa, hold on! There was a lot of rubble on you. Are you hurt, is anything broken? I can help you."

Silver looks around frantically, trying to figure out what to do. Zero had specifically told him, _"Don't mess up my history too badly, alright?"_ Without saying a word, Silver takes off at a run off into a more intact part of the building.

"Wait, don't go! Please! It was an accident, I swear! I don't know what happened, I didn't mean to, please! Don't be afraid of me!" Zero begins to break into frantic sobbing as he pleads, "Don't go away, not like all the others! You're the only one left, please! Please!" Silver is already gone. He collapses to the floor, continuing to murmur and sob in a state of half-delirium, "Please… please…"

—–—

Silver picks up the Temporal Sapphire from the floor. Even this far away from the center of the explosion, its damage can be seen in the form of damaged and singed objects. It's incredible that Silver walked away unharmed. He takes a look back in the direction where Zero still likely lays. He gives a sigh, but knows that there's nothing he can do. "Janice, this is Silver. I have the Sapphire."

 _"Very good. Make your way back."_

"Right." Silver tears open a new rift in front of him. He takes one last look behind him before lifting himself in.

—–—

 **CHRONOS PHASE 3**

"Time Control!" Zero forces Chronos into slow motion as he goes in for an attack. Chronos is able to wave his staff to dispel the time limitation, but not in time to block Zero's strike on the sundial on his head. The strike is so powerful that a crack and be heard as Chronos tumbles to the ground. He quickly gets back into a crouching position, but does not stand up.

"You are strong. But you will not be able to defeat me when you come to face me in my own realm. If you reveal Janice's deception before it is too late…you may yet survive." He waves his staff around his head, and a large rift forms beneath him, which he sinks into.

Zero looks down into the portal. He shakes his head. "I have work to do." He is about to turn away, but something else catches his eye. He picks it up. It has a long string tied around it, perhaps meant to be a necklace. On the end is a silvery circular object, with a simple aqua pattern on the front. The pattern is a circle, with a straight line coming out of the bottom. _"I wonder…did Chronos drop this?"_ He turns it to the side, where a small latch can be seen connecting two sides of a seam. The object appears to be a locket. Zero pulls at the latch, but it doesn't open. He shrugs and puts it away. He pulls out a Sapphire and begins walking around the rift and onwards to his goal. "Janice, this is Zero."

 _"I can hear you. Do you have the next Sapphire?"_

"No. I just had a run-in with Chronos."

 _"Chronos!? What happened? Did he take any Sapphires?"_

"I'm fine, I beat him, and he disappeared into a rift."

 _"Good. Did anything else happen of note? Did he say anything?"_

Zero thinks on this for a moment. "…No, nothing. He just attacked me."

 _"He must fear how close we're getting. Keep a sharp eye out in case he comes back."_

For a moment, he seems to show disdain at having been given an order, but he quickly shakes it off and says, "Understood." He puts away the Sapphire and keeps walking. _"Everything that Chronos said was nonsense. So…why is it that I suddenly don't trust Janice anymore? Could she really be lying to us? Could–"_ His thoughts are interrupted as he sees that there's a person a person standing in front of him. It appears to be none other than a young Silver once again. He holds a Temporal Sapphire. "Back so soon, Chronos? One beating not enough for you?"

"You caused a lot of damage in that fight back there. People could have gotten hurt."

"Ugh, not more of this humanitarian talk. It's a little bit too late to try and make me feel more ' _comfortable_ '. In fact, it's too late for any of this, I'm running out of time and patience. Hand over that Sapphire, or I'm taking it."

"Why should I give you anything!?"

"How unfortunate that you feel that way. Time Control!" Zero rips out a Sapphire of his own, locking his opponent in place. The grey-furred hedgehog is forced to watch as Zero rushes at him and strikes him, causing him to drop the gem. Wasting no time, Zero picks it up and shouts, "Janice, I've got it and I'm on my way! Time Control!" With a shockwave of temporal energy, a rift opens in front of Zero.

Just as Zero is about to hop in, he stops dead, and looks over at young Silver, who has only just landed on the ground in his slow motion. A look of horror is on Zero's face. He thinks back to words that Silver had said. _"This guy attacked me and stole one of the Miracle Gems when I was just a kid!"_ Zero finally comes to the realization, _"That isn't Chronos…that's the real Silver… And I just viciously attacked him and stole his gem, unprovoked. What have I done?"_

" _Zero, where are you? I thought you were on your way."_

"…Yeah, I'm coming." Regrettingly, Zero leaps into the rift, leaving young Silver alone to ponder for years what had just happened to him.

—–—

 **The Void**

Silver lands on the floor of The Void, followed only a few moments later by Zero. At once, Zero says, "Silver." and Silver says, "Zero."

After an awkward moment, Silver says, "You first."

Zero let's out a sigh. "…I'm sorry. You were right all along. I did attack you as a child, unprovoked. I didn't understand that– oh, nevermind. The circumstances don't matter. If you want retribution, now's your chance. I deserve whatever you want done with me."

Silver lets out a chuckle. "Sounds like you're beating yourself up worse than I ever could. Lighten up! I figured that something like this was going to happen. Time travel, it starts to make you think in ways you wouldn't expect."

"You…you expected this? Perhaps you aren't as naive as I first thought."

"Or maybe I've just changed. Wait…you thought I was naive? Why does everyone think that!?"

"Calm down, I'm just kidding with you. It's good to have a friend. Now, you had something to say?"

"Oh, yeah. Umm…while I was there…at the lab…"

"It happened, didn't it? The Sapphire wouldn't have been in there without a good reason. It wanted to show you what happened to me."

"Yeah…but I…I don't think I understand. Who was that man? What were they doing to you? What happened to the others?"

Zero sighs again. "…Where could I even begin? That lab was the place where I was…awakened."

"Awakened? What does that mean?"

"I…I'm not really sure myself. I was alive before I woke up in the lab, but I wasn't…me. And then one day…I was. Just like that. I had no idea who I was or why I was so suddenly changed. And…there was Doctor Gregor Robotnik, offering to help me answer all of my questions. How could I have said no?" He is silent for a moment. "And so, the tests began. I was given a designation. Subject 000, the prototype. The one time I ever asked, I was told that what was being learned about me would be used to help others like me who would be coming. But I wasn't interested in others. Only myself." Again he stops as he gathers his thoughts.

"The tests were simple at first. I was asked to run until I couldn't stand anymore. To lift heavier and heavier objects, until they nearly crushed me. Of course it wasn't comfortable, but for a while I took a different comfort. By discovering my limits, I felt like I was continuing to grow closer to understanding who I was. Soon…the others began to appear. I was never allowed to see their faces. It was around that time that the tests began to change. Instead of testing my abilities…the focus changed to things…things that I had no control over. How my body would respond when injected with various chemicals. Exposed to various diseases. They began testing my threshold for pain. My response to injury. To malnourishment. Any free will that I had thought I had was being stripped away. I detested all of the changes, but my wishes were ignored, and I knew no other way.

"As my situation worsened, I began to seek desperately for other comforts. So eventually I gathered the courage…to speak to the others. Interaction between us was discouraged. I had to do it in secret, at nights when I knew we weren't being watched. Even then, most refused to disobey the rules. Except for one. Subject 009. She was the only one who ever spoke to me more than a few times. We would talk almost every night. Sometimes, when we would run out of things to say, we would just…speak nonsense, just taking comfort in each other's voices. But the one thing that we never talked about…was our feelings. About the tests, about the Doctor, about…everything. I never once saw her face." He takes another moment to compose himself.

"Somehow, Robotnik found out. But rather than separating us…he tried to exploit us. I think…he wanted to get me to hate her. To prove in the most painful, yet subtle way, that there's nothing I could have that he couldn't take away. He wanted me to believe that she was meant to replace me. He would always bring tests to the point of failure, and then threaten to bring out Nine if I did fail. But he was mistaken. I did not beg for him to keep testing me instead out of jealousy. I did it out of…out of…protection. I couldn't stand to let her be hurt in my place. And she knew, even though I never told her. She understood. And she began to think about it." Another pause.

"One of the many things we talked about…was our test results. She told me how much stronger I was than her. And faster, and more enduring, and smarter. And finally she suggested…that I could refuse. That I had no reason to listen to Robotnik any longer. That he was no match for me. I wasn't really sure if I believed it or not. I was the prototype, so why would I be better than the real things? And even if I am stronger than the other ones like me, I thought, who's to say that it makes me stronger than my captor? Every day she brought it up again, and every day I asked myself those questions. All the while, the tests kept getting worse. My leg was broken in one of them, I don't even remember the circumstances any more. So one day…I was called in for a test…and I refused."

Silver speaks for the first time in a while, "And that's what I saw."

"Good. Then I don't have to talk about that part."

"But what I didn't see was what happened after."

Zero sighs. "…It's hard to remember. It's all just a big angry red blur to me. But what I do remember is waking up alone, for the first time in my life, knowing that the only people in the world who ever knew me were afraid of me. Even…even Nine. I hurt them…I could have killed them! What kind of monster am I!?"

"No. You are wrong. They were never in any danger."

"What…what do you mean?"

"The explosion…it damaged so much of the building, an incredible distance from you. An explosion of that much power, it should have vaporized anyone that close to you. It should have vaporized _me._ But it didn't. I was completely unhurt. Even in your unthinkable rage, you still kept control. Somehow, you made that explosion so that it couldn't affect anything that you didn't want it to. That's incredible! Do you remember that!?"

He lets out an odd combination of a grunt and a sigh. "I…I do remember something. I remember watching her run away. Away from the monster she must have thought I was after I exploded like that. I really don't know how it happened. I've never come close to doing anything like that again. Not that I've tried."

"It must be the Sapphire. Chaos powers are fuelled by emotion, and you had a lot of it, with a Temporal Sapphire lying just a few rooms away, amplifying it all into energy."

"Yeah…that must be it. But…I remember something else. I was so disturbed at the time, I was never sure if it was even real. It was you. You were there, I remember it. And you…you listened to me. You didn't interfere. Thank you."

"Don't."

"What?"

"Don't thank me. How could you thank me!? I had to sit back and watch, while you were forced into a life of solitude and misery! I had a chance to change my friend's life for the better, but I was told not to! Why!?"

After a moment, Zero chuckles a bit. "That question has been in the back of my mind from the minute this all began. And somewhere along the way, I realized…my life is my life. What you propose would make me into a different person, one who hasn't lived and learned from all of his time alone. And the person I am now…he would be gone. He would cease to exist. And…wouldn't that be the same thing as dying? Everything that's ever happened to me, good or bad…it's all part of who I am. It's all important to me. And I'm not going to lose it."

The whole area is silent for a long moment. Then a new voice speaks from behind them, "I'd say that still leaves one question." Sonic has clearly been standing there and listening for some time. "What happened to your city? Or is it your whole world? Just a short time earlier, the whole world seemed like…well, the future. So what changed that?"

Zero seems a bit more comfortable with this topic. "That event…it really goes unrecorded in your history?" Sonic nods. "I'm afraid that I'm not really the person to ask. I know very little. It was called the Chaos War." He takes out the Chaos Emerald which he has kept with him all of this time. "I didn't understand it at the time…but it had something to do with these…Chaos Emeralds. Everyone wanted them. And there weren't enough to go around. And through some process that is meaningless to me, this want led to every country in the world launching their most lethal weapons against each other. I was near one of the launch points when it first happened. I was contemplating…entering the compound. Revealing my existence to the world. But I…I was too afraid. I turned my back and went back to mope on my own again. Only a few hours later…that compound launched its weapons. If I had been in there…they would have been too busy focusing on me to be concerned with their stupid war! I could have stopped the near-destruction of my planet if I hadn't been such a coward!"

Zero looks up with a start as Silver puts a hand on his shoulder. "I think that you have nothing to worry about."

"And why is that?"

"Because, I can tell you from experience. The future of the world looks pretty bright.

Sonic adds, "I can vouch for that."

Zero lets out another sigh, but this one of contentment. "Thanks, guys." He turns to Sonic. "Something seems…different about you. What happened to you during that mission?"

"I met the one person understands me better than I can understand myself. And he helped open my eyes. The fool that you knew is gone, hopefully for good."

After all of this time, Janice finally speaks. "Speaking of missions, we are still in the middle of one. It is time for the final battle to begin."

 **To be Continued…**


	11. S0 E7: Race Against Time Part 1

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 7**

 **Speed of Time, Part 7: Race Against Time Part 1**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **The Void**

"We now have all of the Sapphires. And with just a small amount of time to spare. Now, since we have this time, I feel the obligation to ask…do any of you have anything that you need to do before we begin the final battle? Any loose ends to tie up?"

Zero shakes his head. Silver does as well. But Sonic says, "You bet I do. I've got a promise to keep. I need to go back to my own time."

"Very well. You have ten minutes. I would have asked earlier, when you had more time, but it seemed like you were all having a moment. I didn't want to interrupt you."

Sonic has already taken off, and shouts back, "I'll only need eight!" Within a moment, he is gone behind the newest rift.

Silver turns to Zero. "So, what do we do while we wait?"

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Zero pulls out the locket he found in the future. "I found this on my last mission. I was wondering if you might know what it is." He hands it over to Silver.

Silver stares intensely at it. "No way…" He waves a hand over it as his own aqua patterns begin to glow, and the locket pops open. But the inside is completely empty "Where did you find this!? This is the locket I lost as a kid! It's made to open only to my psychic signature!"

Zero thinks back. Chronos had said, _"Hold on, I have something to show you, a uh…a sign of goodwill." … Zero is about to turn away, but something else catches his eye. He picks it up. It has a long string tied around it, perhaps meant to be a necklace. On the end is a silvery circular object, with a simple aqua pattern on the front. The pattern is a circle, with a straight line coming out of the bottom. "I wonder…did Chronos drop this?"_ Zero looks up to the Janice orb. _"I can't let her know what Chronos told me."_ He looks back to Silver. "I uh…I found it on the ground after I fought Chronos. It was just lying there."

"I see. I lost it a long time before we fought. I always held out hope that I would find it again, but I never did."

"So…why is it empty?"

"I…I guess I never really figured out what I wanted to put in there. The locket itself was so important to me, I couldn't just put any old thing in there. So I left it empty."

"Well…I'm glad you got it back after all of this time. Maybe you'll think of something to put in there soon?"

"Yeah…maybe."

—–—

 **Mystic Ruins Zone**

Sonic slides out of a rift, and takes a moment to look around and gather his bearings. The space-time rifts have gotten completely out of control, with vortexes of every imaginable size littered about as far as the eye can see. Out in the ocean, a massive whirlpool can be seen, presumably with a large rift at its bottom. A vast majority of the sky is entirely covered by one gigantic rift, bathing the area in a blue light. It appears as if it would be hard even to walk without running into them, but still Sonic runs off towards the cliffs above the ocean, where Tails' lab sits high atop one particularly high cliff. He makes it there within a few moments, and goes right in.

"Sonic! You're back!" Tails sits at a desk, full of scattered notes and a few half-finished pieces of machinery. A relatively small rift floats in the middle of the room, which Sonic carefully moves around.

"I'm afraid I can't stay long, Tails. The final battle is just ahead, but I'm stopping here first like I promised. So, you got anything?"

"Oh, it's incredible, Sonic! I've learned more over the past few days than I have in my entire life! With the research that I've done, I can open up an entire new branch of theoretical physics!"

"Sounds like it's a good thing you stayed behind. So have you put any of this research to good use?"

"Oh, uh…" He begins frantically looking around at his desk, but nothing there appears to be close to working order. "Sorry, I've just had so many ideas that I've been trying to work on at once, I haven't gotten to finish any of it… Oh, wait! I do have something!" He stands up and runs over to the opposite wall where he pulls down a lever, opening up the stairway leading to the basement level. "Stay right there!" He runs down the stairs. Almost immediately, Sonic begins impatiently tapping his foot. When he realizes with slight surprise that he's doing it, he stops himself. Instead, he begins to examine the small rift in the middle of the room. He doesn't hear Tails as he comes back up. "I almost lost a few good notes when that one appeared," he says, noticing Sonic's interest. "But once it was there, it made research a lot easier. Actually, I don't think I've left this building since it appeared."

"So whaddaya have?"

"Oh, right." Tails pulls out and presents a small black device with a tiny protrusion coming out of the bottom.

Sonic takes it and examines it carefully. "What is it?"

"Well, it actually doesn't work yet. But it's supposed to be a 'Chaos Communicator'."

"Alright, so what does that mean?"

"It's meant to send and receive audio signals via the same type of electromagnetic radiation that these rifts emit, which is actually really similar to the Chaos Emeralds. If my calculations are correct, it should be able to communicate almost instantaneously not just between any two points in space, no matter how distant, but any two points in _time_. But only if there's a linked communicator on the other end."

"This'll let us speak through time? Sweet!"

"Well, theoretically. Like I said, it doesn't quite work yet."

"So what's the point of giving to me?"

"Well, I already have the reception part down. But I'm having problems with the signal breaking down immediately upon transmission. But once I get that part figured out, we can start talking right away!"

"Sounds like a plan!" Sonic fastens the device to his ear.

"So, how much time do you have left?"

"Only a couple of minutes. I should get going, and you should get to work."

"It's too bad. You only just got back, and now you're leaving again…"

"I'd love to stay. But my kind of work is never done."

Tails seems to take an odd interest in that last statement. But all he says is "Good luck."

"I expect to hear from you soon." With that, Sonic exits the door. He pulls out a Sapphire and tosses into the air, preparing to take off. But he is interrupted by a massive tremor, causing him to stumble and drop the gem.

In front of Sonic, a massive robot mech has landed on the floor, with Eggman piloting the head. The mech is tall and somewhat effeminate in shape, with a pinkish-purple and red color scheme, and wearing a long, cape-like robe around its shoulders. It wears an elegant crown on top of the cockpit, and wields a long, almost-as-elegant sword. "Sonic, so glad that I finally found you!"

Sonic chuckles a bit. "Isn't this one a bit girly for you, Egg…man?"

"Aww, what's the matter, Sonic? Can't come up with a good insulting nickname?"

"I don't have time for games. As much fun as a scrap would be, I don't have time for that either. I have a job to do. So I suggest that you get out of my way."

"And that, my fine blue friend, is why I am here. Look around you! The universe is falling apart!"

"Slow as usual, Doctor. I already know all about it."

"Ah, but I know how to stop it! I've been spending this time studying these rifts, scanning through history, and now I know how to save the universe! I can help!"

"Already know that too." Sonic leans down and picks up the dropped Sapphire. "And you act as if I haven't heard that one before. I don't want any of _your_ help."

"I see that you already have one. That's good! Once we gather all of them, we can use your power to seal all of the breaches. It's a perfect plan, but we must move quickly." He pulls out a small stack of papers, and holds them high above his head. "I have the location of every one of them right here."

"Eggman, seriously, I already have them all, and now I need to go use them… Wait, did you say _I_ can close the rifts?"

"Well, perhaps you would need the help of Shadow, but I'm certain that a well-timed Chaos Control could–"

"Uhh, Eggman? What happened to your notes?"

Eggman looks up to his still-raised hand to find it just inches away from a newly-formed rift, the papers he was holding having been lost inside. Surprisingly, the rift closes itself, leaving no trace of ever having been there. "What!? No!" He turns to Sonic with ferocity. "You did this, didn't you!? That's why you know so much, you were planning to steal my research from the beginning! You've crossed the line, hedgehog!"

"Whoa whoa, just calm down, Eggman. I know about all this because of what Janice told me."

"Janice? That woman who tricked you in my base? Ha! You really haven't figured out yet that she's the cause of all of this!? You must be even more of a fool than I thought!"

For a moment, Sonic seems to grow angry at the insult. But then he relaxes. "Sorry, Eggman. I'm afraid you have it all wrong. But if it takes a good old fashioned beating to prove it to you, then bring it on!"

Eggman growls, "Egg Queen, attack!"

—–—

 **The Void**

Silver, Zero, and Janice stand around in awkward silence. Zero begins impatiently tapping his foot. Suddenly, he lets out, "He's late! I thought he was supposed to be fast!"

Silver reassures, "Just give him a minute, he will be here."

"Fine." The silence resumes, as does Zero's foot-tapping. After another moment, he speaks out again, "What if something happened to him? We'd be wasting time for nothing."

"Calm down, I'm sure he's fine."

Janice interjects, "No, Zero is right. We can't wait for him any longer. It will be difficult, but we will have to make do without him."

"Well we can't just leave him. Besides, he has a few Sapphires that we can't do without. We have to wait for him."

"Actually, he only has one. That's all any of you need, I've been holding on to the rest. Haven't you noticed?"

Silver and Zero each pull out a Sapphire, but find that they don't have any more. They give each other an odd look, but think little of it.

"Now, it's time to–"

There is a loud crack and and a bang as a new rift opens and Sonic slides in through it. "Sorry I'm late, guys. But everything's ready now."

"Good. We are out of time, so let's make this quick. Getting into Chronos' realm will be much easier with all three of you here. Sonic, you will create a new rift as usual, make sure you give yourself room to have the rift open right here."

"Right!" Sonic turns and runs a fair distance back before stopping. "Just tell me when!"

"Now, Zero and Silver, you will both need to watch closely. At the exact moment that Sonic is about to breach the rift, the two of you must also attempt to open a rift in that same place. The three of you together should be enough to create a rift powerful enough to breach into the realm of Chronos. Are you ready?" All three hedgehogs nod. "Then begin!"

With more style and flair than ever, Sonic tosses his Sapphire high into the air, and does a swift little turn all the way around before snagging the gem back. Then he takes off. Almost instantly, The Void begins to shake violently, causing Sonic to trip, stumble, and nearly fall, as the countless visible rifts begin to grow rapidly.

Janice shouts to all of them, "Ignore the tremors, keep your focus! We no longer have time to start over!"

Sonic redoubles his speed as Zero and Silver stand ready with their gems. Sonic becomes cloaked in a sparking blue aura as his speed increases and he draws closer to the others.

"Now!"

Simultaneously, Silver lets out a shout as he forces his hand forward, his aqua patterns once more turning blue, as Zero cries, "Time Control!" A blue shockwave emerges from his gem. Silver's psychic energy condenses around a point where the wave reaches. Right at that moment, Sonic bursts through that point, creating a bang so powerful that it knocks Silver and Zero off of their feet. Left in Sonic's place is a massive red Space-Time Rift. The tremors continue as strong as ever, and the blue rifts have grown to the point of putting the hedgehogs in danger of being enveloped by them.

Janice shouts, "Follow after him, now!" The hedgehogs struggle to their feet, and each leap into the red rift.

—–—

 **The Timestream**

Sonic skids out of the rift surrounded by an almost blinding light. Light of all imaginable shades of blue rushes by in streaks from behind him and forward for as far as the eye can see, forming a rough tube shape around him. Within a moment, the other two hedgehogs enter through the rift as well, immediately followed by the Chronos-like form of Janice.

A voice booms from nowhere, "So, you really did make it? I must say, I'm impressed. I never thought Janice would even be able to attempt such a coup. Yet here you are."

Janice demands, "Show yourself, Chronos! Your time as ruler has reached its end!"

The booming voice of Chronos responds, "Oh, my dear, naive Janice. You know that this will never work. You cannot fill my role. You cannot even save the universe that you are destroying." A light even more blinding than that of the surroundings suddenly forms in the center of the timestream. Slowly, it takes on a humanoid form, and the light dissipates. The form of Chronos appears much as it always has, but far larger. In the center of his chest is embedded a massive blue gem.

Janice mutters, "The Core Sapphire…"

"Stop this foolishness now, before it's too late. Give me the Sapphires." He holds out his hand.

Silver steps forward. "We're not giving you anything! We will do our duty, and put an end to your tyranny!"

Zero joins him. "We will defeat you, no matter what it takes! For the sake of the world!"

Sonic takes point in front of the two. "We're done with your games. Playtime's over."

Chronos takes his hand back, closes his eyes, and shakes his head. "Foolish mortals. This could be so much easier if you only understood. But I've wasted enough effort trying to convince you. If you wish to die fighting for a lie, then so be it!" He raises his staff high into the air. Suddenly, he brings it downwards, slamming into the ground and creating some sort of wave of blue energy. The hedgehogs barely have time to dive out of the way in different directions before the wave passes them and collides with the rift they came out of, somehow shredding it to pieces. "There will be no escape."

The hedgehogs rise again. They each nod to each other. Then they close their eyes, and a dozen Temporal Sapphires begin to orbit around them. Slowly, they begin to emit a radiant blue aura. Each of them open their eyes in succession, revealing that their pupils have also turned a deep blue, as have Silver's aqua patterns. At once, they all turn to Chronos and shout, "Bring it on!"

Chronos wastes no more time. He makes a horizontal slash with his staff, forming another wave. The hedgehogs are already running straight towards him. Zero and Silver are forced to dodge out of the way of the wave, but Sonic is able to slide under and keep running. Given a single target to focus on, Chronos roars, unleashing a beam of energy directed at Sonic. Without stopping, Sonic directs his hands in front of himself, and the blue aura concentrates into a barrier in front of him. The beam impacts the barrier, and is reflected in all directions, though Sonic still slows and reacts to the force of the blow.

From far behind, Janice advises, "You can't rely on the Sapphires to protect you, their power will not last for that much time! You need to avoid his attacks more!"

Sonic ignores her, and continues to charge forward. Finally, he leaps upward, out of the path of the beam, and lands on the tip of Chronos' staff. From there, taking Chronos by surprise, he launches into a strike on the sundial. Chronos is sent reeling back. Sonic lands and shouts, "Silver, pin him down!"

From where he stands, Silver focuses all of his energy on the stumbling Chronos, psychically forcing him to the ground. "Zero, now's your chance!"

Janice adds, "Aim for the Sapphire in the core of his clock! We must remove it, it is the source of his power!"

Zero leaps up and lands on the fallen Chronos' chest. He begins savagely pounding on the gem in the center. After a few moments, cracks seem to form in the area of the clock around it.

Suddenly, Chronos booms, "Enough!" Seemingly by the sound of his voice alone, a massive blue shockwave bursts from him, scattering the hedgehogs in all different directions. He rises back to his feet. "You didn't really think that this would be so easy, did you? This is _my_ realm! _I_ make the rules here!" Chronos suddenly seems to warp a few steps to his left. Then to his right. Then back to the center. The same cycle is repeated, but faster. Within moments, his location can no longer be traced, as he warps so rapidly that he appears to be in all three locations at once. Slowly, the images on either side appear to change from the one in the middle. On the left, Chronos' tattered wings grow to many time their original size, as his woody flesh changes shape and form to be smoother and more aerodynamic. On the right, Chronos' wings shrink, as his staff disappears and his flesh expands to appear more muscular, his body proportions and facial makeup appearing more beast-like. In the center, Chronos shrinks to a mere twice the size of a normal human, as his staff grows longer, thicker, and sharper on the end. He no longer appears to be warping. There are three of him, each appearing and behaving differently. The Sapphire in each of their cores are smaller than the one seen in the single unified Chronos before. While the beastly one roars loudly, the large-winged one and the long-staffed one declare with different inflections, "Fight me if you dare!" The large-winged one suddenly takes flight, and soars off at high speed deeper into the tunnel.

Sonic shouts, "I've got this one," and runs off after it.

Silver yells after him, "Wait, he's just trying to–" He stops as the beastly one leaps off in the other direction, and Zero chases after it. "–split us up…" he trails off.

The long-staffed Chronos states, "That just leaves you and I."

Silver turns to face him. "Alright. If it's a one-on-one fight you want, then that is what you will get. Ha!" Silver unleashes a powerful wave of blue psychic energy.

—–—

Sonic chases after the large-winged Chronos, who flies just out of reach. Sonic searches for an opening to attack, but can't help but be distracted by his own feet, which can hardly even be seen for how fast they are moving. "I…I don't think I've ever run this fast before."

Janice speaks to him from afar, _"That is the power of the Sapphires at their fullest. You wish to move quickly, and the Sapphires listen. They increase the speed of the time around you."_

Sonic seems about to answer, but is interrupted as he is forced to dodge an energy beam fired down by Chronos. Relentlessly, Chronos continues to fire down beam after beam, all of which Sonic successfully sidesteps around. Changing tactics, Chronos swipes his staff, shooting a wave at Sonic, which he barely has time to slide under. Seeming to grow angrier, Chronos unleashes a flurry of waves, swiping his staff in all directions. Sonic is forced to undertake all sorts of quick maneuvers, ducking and rolling and hopping and dodging, all while keeping up his incredible speed. Chronos grows even more furious. "Why won't you _die!?_ "

Driven to desperate measures, Chronos dives down at Sonic with his staff out, attempting to impale him. Sonic finds the opening he's been looking for. "Gotcha!" He leaps up into the air, flipping backwards, and Chronos passes underneath him. His sights set, he delivers a spin attack straight to Chronos' sundial. The strike sends Chronos tumbling through the air, as Sonic gets launched even higher. By the power of the Sapphires, the whole world around him seems to slow. Through Chronos' wild tumbling, Sonic is able to see the exact moment when the Core Sapphire is exposed. He goes in for a spin attack, a direct hit.

—–—

The beastly Chronos pounds the ground with a meaty fist, which Zero is barely able to dodge. It roars in anger. Zero runs in for another attack, but Chronos swats him out of the way. He quickly gets back up. _"This isn't working. I need to get in faster…or I can get him to defend slower!"_ He lets the Sapphire aura concentrate around his hands. "Time Control!"

After a moment, Chronos merely cocks its head to one side, as if expecting something to happen. The voice of Janice speaks, _"That won't work. The Core Sapphire protects him. You'll have to try a different way. But even speeding yourself up with the Sapphires, he can increase his speed to match."_

"So it's all up to my own skill. Luckily, I've picked up a thing or two from the fastest thing alive!" Zero curls into a spin dash, taking off lightning-fast, and striking Chronos on the sundial before it has a chance to react. Though it is knocked back, it isn't knocked down. It roars once more in challenge, and attempts to crush Zero between its massive hands. Zero catches them with his own, and holds them back with incredible strength. Chronos growls and redoubles its efforts, causing Zero to cringe under the pressure. For a moment it seems his arms are going to give way. But with a final yell, he pushes back with all of his might, and it is the arms of Chronos that give way. Zero grabs one arm with both hands and hurls the massive creature over his head, sending it tumbling along the ground. He jumps and lands on top of the creature's chest, and again begins pounding away at the gem at its core.

—–—

The long-staffed Chronos twirls his staff all around, perhaps just showing off. Finally, he ends one twirl in a slash, sending out another wave of energy. He continues to make slash after slash in succession, sending a flurry of waves at Silver.

Silver counters each and every wave with a psychic wave of his own, each pair colliding in the air and cancelling each other out.

The attack stop, as Chronos simply stares Silver down. Silver stares back, but neither one makes a move. Finally, Chronos speaks. "You cannot defeat me."

"Oh yeah? Says who?"

"It is not a command. It is a statement of fact. I have split into the three core elements of myself. Sonic now fights my skill, my speed and ability, perhaps a fair match. Zero fights my strength, my instinct, again with comparable abilities. But you. You are staring at my intelligence. My strategy. My perception. You cannot win. You are not even the smartest of your trio, let alone even close to my level. You are naive and insecure." Silver can't help but let out a chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"You might want to check that 'perception' of yours, Chronos. I've changed since last time we fought. You know, it takes a lot of brainpower to use psychic powers properly. I just haven't been doing it right!" Suddenly, he unleashes two crossed psychic waves, one from each arm, aimed right at Chronos.

"Ha!" Chronos swings his staff and dissipates the waves easily. Staff still directed outwards, he declares, "You're going to have to do better than that!" Suddenly, he feels a tug on his staff.

"I wouldn't be too sure!" Silver rips the staff from Chronos' hands with his powers, and lets it land gently in his own. "You let your guard down, just like I was planning. It was almost too easy."

"It is of no consequence." He holds out a hand, and a new staff generates in it. "You couldn't possibly use such a tool."

"We'll just have to see about that!" Though it is a bit long and awkward for him to hold, Silver swings the staff forward with all of his might, putting his own psychic powers behind it. A massive wave of combined power is generated. Chronos only stares with wide eyes as he is hit with the overwhelming attack.

—–—

The large-winged Chronos slides across the ground, knocked out of the air. The Core Sapphire lies faceup, exposed. Suddenly, Sonic slams down on top of it in a bounce attack. From the air, he goes right back down into another, and another. Relentlessly, Sonic slams down on the gem continuously, until the area around it begins to crack once more. Finally, he uncurls and lands on Chronos' chest. He aims a final kick at the protruding gem.

—–—

Zero pounds one final time on the exposed gem, and the area around it cracks. He firmly grabs the gem, digging his fingers into the cracked wood around it. He begins to pull.

—–—

Silver stands over the fallen Chronos. He directs his hands to face the exposed gem, and uses his powers to pull with all of his might. As the gem begins to just barely lift away, the area around it begins to crack.

—–—

Three shards of one Core Sapphire tear away from their holder, and the three hedgehogs each raise their prize triumphantly. In her blue-haired human form, Janice appears to each of them, the young one to Zero, the old one to Silver, and the adult one to Sonic. She speaks to each of them, "You have done well, hero. Now, give me the Core Sapphire, so I may repair the damage done to the universe. Then you can meet me back at the point we entered from, so I can send you home." The three Janices each extend a hand. The hedgehogs dutifully place their gem shard into the hand, and their blue auras fade. "Thank you." Sonic and Zero turn back to return to the point they entered from, and soon meet up with Silver.

Unable to contain his excitement, Zero is the first to shout, "We did it!"

Silver finishes, "We won!" Now the best of friends, Silver and Zero wrap an arm around each other's shoulder and laugh. But Silver's mood begins to change. "I…I guess this is goodbye…" He gets right to the point. "Zero, I want to thank you for being my friend. For helping me to open up."

"It was me who needed it. You've let me in. And that's all I can ask for out of a friend."

Suddenly, Sonic joins in, wrapping an arm around Silver's shoulders and placing him in the middle. "What about me? Have I been a good friend?"

Zero jokes, "Eh, you've been alright. You know, for a bumbling fool." The three all share a nice long laugh about it.

Their moment of fellowship is interrupted by a weak voice. "You don't understand what you've done…" The long-staffed Chronos has stood back up, and slowly steps toward the group, heavily relying on the staff for support. "Janice…I beg of you…stop this now, before it's too late…"

Behind the hedgehogs, the Chronos-like form of Janice stands tall, the 12 Sapphires and 3 Core shards orbiting around her. Apparently, she has picked up the staff which Silver had dropped. "Oh, so now you beg? You at last admit that I _am_ superior? Well, it's too late for that, old man. Now, this is _my_ realm. Now, _I_ make the rules. And my first rule…weaklings like you four are not allowed!"

Silver steps forward in confusion. "Janice, I don't understand. What's going on here?"

"Oh, you poor, gullible fool! Fools, all of you! You couldn't see through such a simple ruse, even as you were told it was such! You _deserved_ to be tricked for how easy you made it!"

Suddenly filled with rage, Zero shouts shouts, "You traitor! You weren't going to save the world at all, were you!?"

Chronos answers. "No…she is the cause of its destruction."

"I don't need your pathetic world! With my new power, I can create a new timeline! One where I am not just the ruler of time, but the ruler of all!"

Sonic cries out with rage as he springs into action, aiming an attack at her sundial. She easily blocks the blow with a hand. Silver moves next, attempting to psychically restrict her. With a dramatic movement of her arms, she dispels the aqua energy. Zero seems ready to strike, but Janice cries, "Enough of this!" With a wave of her hand, a blood-red rift forms behind the hedgehogs, and with a slash of her staff, a wave of energy crashes into them, sending them spiraling into the portal. "You next, oh great _master_." She directly hits the weak Chronos with the staff, sending him into the rift as well.

For a moment, all is quiet. Then, as the rift begins to close, Janice lets out a great booming laugh. "Hahahahahaha!"

 **To be Continued…**


	12. S0 E8: Race Against Time Part 2

**Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 8**

 **Speed of Time, Part 8: Race Against Time Part 2**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **Unknown**

Slowly, the blackness begins to fade away. Sonic is the first to come to consciousness, his head buried deep in the snow. With a slight struggle, he frees himself, and rises to his feet. He doesn't dare look back at the other unconscious figures he knows lie behind him. A harsh blizzard blows all around, obscuring from view anything beyond a few feet away in whiteness. But Sonic does not feel the cold. Only the guilt. Barely audible over the harsh blowing wind, he finally lets out, "I knew. I already knew. Time after time I saw that it had to be a ruse, but I ignored it. I…I really am a fool!" He kicks a pile of snow in an attempt to expend his rage.

Silver is apparently already awake, though he hasn't moved from his fallen position, simply lying there in the snow. "How could I be so naive, so gullible!? It should have been obvious. The Master Emerald showed me the betrayal, and I still couldn't see it!"

Zero rises to his hands and knees, and pounds a fist into the snow. "All I wanted to do was help fix the world. And all I've done is help along its destruction. What have I done!?"

"So are you going to keep wallowing in your own self-pity, or are you going to do something about it?" The three hedgehogs are forced to turn to face the speaker, Chronos, who uses his staff as support to lift himself off of the ground. "Clearly I've made the greatest mistakes of all, but we accomplish nothing by lingering on it. We must analyze the situation, and determine an appropriate course of action."

Sonic is the first to respond, though he still avoids making eye contact with anyone. "I don't remember anyone asking _you_."

"Oh, stop it with the self-righteousness already. I'm the good guy, and you were all fooled, so don't treat me like it's _my_ fault you're here."

After a moment of silence, Zero lets out, "He's right."

Finally, everyone begins to look at each other again. Chronos is the only one among them who is significantly wounded, only able to stand by supporting himself on the staff. Silver inquires, "So…where exactly _is_ here? Or…when?"

Chronos begins to look around. "This is what you would call the…Ice Age. Perhaps 25,000 years before Zero's time."

Sonic seems reassured. "So, we're just in the past then? That shouldn't be too much of a problem."

Zero scoffs. "I don't know if you were aware or not, but time travel isn't exactly a simple feat without the Sapphires. I imagine Janice wouldn't have put Chronos here if he had the power to escape so easily. What does that leave?"

"It leaves us with _these_." Sonic pulls out an armful of six Chaos Emeralds. "If two of us use Chaos Control with different Emeralds at the same time, it can act like a Time Control, and open a Space-time Rift for us."

Chronos immediately responds, "There are two problems with your suggestion. One, you could never get into the Timestream that way. You could return to your own times for perhaps a few hours before the universe is destroyed. And two, even that wouldn't be possible. Look around you. There are no rifts. This is a naturally-occurring phenomena that exists in small numbers throughout this and all other timelines. We are in an Isolated Time Pocket. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to time travel to or from such a pocket. This was Janice's punishment for me. Even when I eventually recover my power, I would never be able to leave this place. When the rest of the universe ends, time will cease to progress in this pocket. I would be forced to remain in this unchanging place for all of eternity, with only your skulls as company, to remind me of my failure."

The hedgehogs all shudder at the thought. But Zero responds, "So how do you propose that we escape an inescapable prison?"

"I…I don't know. It's never happened before."

"What!? You're the one that said–"  
"I said that we had to analyze, and if I already knew the answer then I would've–"

The two go on arguing, but Sonic stops and puts a hand to his ear as he begins to hear static. Very faintly, a voice can be made out within it. "S–––c –– ––y––– –– –––ch –––! C–– ––– –––r –e?"

"Tails! Tails, is that you!?" Chronos and Zero go silent and turn to Sonic.

The static begins to clear up a bit. "Son–– i– ––at yo–? C–n you he–r me?"

"Tails, this is Sonic, I can hear you! We need help!"

"It works, it actually works! I've been working nonstop to get this radio to work since you left, and– Wait, what's going on?"

"We're stuck here, in a, uh, a Time Pocket, that's like a–"

"A Time Pocket!? How in the world did you get into a Time Pocket!?"

"It's a long story, but we need a way out, any way at all."

"Alright, let me think. Umm…you keep saying 'we,' who's there with you?"

"Well…you haven't met any of them, they're, uh–"

Zero loses his patience, and snatches the communicator away from Sonic, shouting, "Oh, give me that! We're going to freeze out here if you keep wasting time!" He begins using the communicator himself. "There's four of us, three animoid hedgehogs, all Chaos-users, and one Time Lord with lots of knowledge and no power. Can we get out or not?"

Sonic interjects, "There you go using that word–" Zero shushes him. "What does 'animoid' even–" Zero shushes him again.

After a moment, Tails responds, "I think I've got something. There's a red button on the back of the communicator, press it so everyone can hear." Zero obeys, and Tails' voice begins projecting out loud. "When it comes to opening a Space-time Rift, it all comes down to the amount of Chaos Energy involved. It takes all of the power of a Chaos Emerald twice over just to open a regular time portal." While Tails talks, Sonic expectantly puts out his hand, and Zero reluctantly gives the communicator back. "If my calculations here are correct, three Chaos Controls using all seven Emeralds might just be enough to create a rift of near _infinite_ depth, taking you even out of an inescapable Time Pocket, and go to whichever place, or time, you want."

Sonic and Silver both grunt in irritation, but Zero cocks his head to one side. Sonic speaks into the communicator, "That's great and all, Tails, but…we only have six. Could that be enough?"

"…No. No, that wouldn't be enough, seven barely cuts it as it is."

"Then…then we're stuck here." He hangs his head in defeat.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Zero speaks, staring off into the distance. "I feel…something."

Silver questions, "'Something'? You mean a Chaos Emerald?"

"I…I think so. I'm not sure."

Tails finishes, "If there is an Emerald, you need to go after it right away. Things…aren't looking so good here. You're running out of time."

Sonic nods in understanding. "Zero, where is it?"

He points off in the direction he's been staring. "It's this way. Follow me." He runs off, and Sonic and Silver follow. Chronos lags behind, using his staff as a crutch.

Along the way, Sonic turns to Zero. "So, I never got my answer. What's an 'animoid'?"

"Well... it's what you are."

"I gathered that much. What does it mean?"

"It means...well, we aren't exactly animals, are we? That has a certain...derogatory connotation. We have a level of consciousness higher than that of regular animals. We certainly aren't human. We're something in the middle, and even then we have abilities greater than either of those groups. I suppose the technical term would be 'anthropomorphic superhuman hedgehog' in our case, but that hardly rolls off the tongue. So, animoid."

"Hm. I'll have to keep that one in mind." The group continues their trek through the snow in silence.

—–—

 **Glacial Pocket Zone**

Zero slams his fist into a sheet of ice. The hedgehogs have arrived at a massive glacier. Zero hits it again, and it begins to crack. Chronos appears to only just be arriving, now walking a bit more normally. Zero hits a few more times, and the cracks spread wider and wider. With one final blow, a large section of the ice shatters, revealing a cave on the inside. "It's through here. I'm sure of it."

The others nod, and begin making their way through the glacial cave, glad to be out of the blizzard. They've hardly walked a few feet before they've reached another impasse. A massive pile of ice chunks sits in their way, reaching all the way up to the ceiling. Sonic comments, "There must have been a cave-in."

Silver steps forward. "Step aside. I can handle this." He cracks his fingers before directing his hands forward and closing his eyes. The pile becomes cloaked in a turquoise light as Silver focuses his power. Suddenly, he opens his eyes, lets out a cry, and pushes forward with all of his might. The ice explodes back, scattering in all directions, and freeing the necessary path. "I'll take the lead. Let's move."

As they walk, Chronos speaks out of curiosity, "I just can't figure it out. Why would Janice send us to the one Time Pocket in all of reality with a Chaos Emerald? How did that Emerald get here in the first place? Even Janice wouldn't be so foolish as to not check first."

Silver is quick to answer. "You have it backwards. This is how the Chaos Emeralds work. It's just like what Janice said to you, Sonic. The Emeralds go where they need to be. Janice didn't send us here in spite of there being an Emerald. The Emerald is here because this is where Janice was going to send us."

The other three ponder this as Silver stops to move a large block of ice out of their path.

—–—

The hedgehogs have stopped once more. Steep, sharp, high-rising cliffs of ice rise high all around them. High on the top of the cliff directly in front of them, an opening deeper into the cave can be seen. Silver says, "I could probably get us up there. But it would take a while."

Sonic steps forward. "No time. I'll go, and bring back the Emerald as fast as I can." Without waiting for a reply, Sonic runs straight for the wall in front of him. His momentum is enough to allow him to run up several steps. Just as he reaches his peak, he kicks off the wall and onto another, which he runs up for a few more steps. He continues this way, leaping from wall to wall, taking advantage of whatever foothold he can find, until he finally makes it into the opening at the top. He continues in at top speed, leaving his friends behind.

—–—

Sonic has reached a wide clearing in the very center of the glacier. The yellow Chaos Emerald lies in the center. "There it is." He reaches down to pick it up.

Suddenly, his communicator goes off again. "Sonic…I think this is it. This is the end."

"Don't say that Tails, I have the Emerald! We're going to fix everything, right now!"

"I've taken shelter in the basement, the rifts seem to move slower through solid mass than they do through air. But they've made it all the way through. I'm surrounded on all sides. I only have a few minutes left, maybe less." Sonic takes on renewed anger and determination at the words, but says nothing. "Sonic…I believe in you. You can fix this. If it's possible to close the rifts, then it doesn't matter if I get swallowed. It'll be like it never happened." He's silent for another moment. "I was right. It was less. Sonic…good luck. I–" The message cuts to static.

"Tails? Tails? Tails!?" Static is the only response.

Sonic looks down to the Emerald he holds. He pushes it up slightly, and it begins to float into the air, orbiting around him. Six more Emeralds join it. He closes his eyes and clenches his outstretched hand into a fist. As his fist begins to shake, he begins to lift into the air. His quills raise up as if blown by an unseen wind, as his fur takes on a golden glow. The Emeralds around him orbit faster and faster, until Sonic's eyes burst open, now a deep red color. "Chaos Control." With those words, he disappears from the room.

—–—

Silver, Zero, and Chronos wait for Sonic. After a moment of silence, Zero lets out, "He should've been back by now, the Emerald is close."

Silver consoles, "He's fine. Have a little confidence."

Chronos seems about to say something, but they all turn as they hear a loud noise behind them. A blood-red rift opens, and the form of Janice steps out. The rift closes immediately behind. "It seems that we have a group of unruly prisoners here. I must say, I wasn't expecting an escape attempt, least of all a collaborative one. I was so certain you would all hate each other."

Silver steps forward with rage. "Janice. We are not afraid of you! We will–"

Chronos puts a hand in front of Silver. "Stay back. You can't defend yourselves without a Sapphire. I'll handle this."

"Taking things into your own hands, are you old master? I began to wonder if you were even capable of acting for yourself with how you ordered me around."

"It was for your own learning, my dear misguided apprentice. You know that as well as I. Even with all of the practice I gave you, you still never learned. I'm disappointed, really. I saw so much potential in you."

"You lie! I've been ready for an eternity! But still you denied me the power I deserved, forcing me to do all of your menial labor instead! You had this coming, you old fool!"

"Look who you are calling a fool, when you do not even realize your own faults! Just think! Think of how many times you slipped up in your _mission_ to dethrone me! You got distracted! You sent them to the wrong times! You mistook Emeralds for Sapphires! You allowed your pawns to meet when they were never meant to! You couldn't even find the Sapphires without the notes you stole from Sonic's enemy! And even then you could barely interpret them quickly enough! You are unskilled! Inexperienced! You can't even finish the rest of your plan! You can't create a new timeline, you don't have the power, nor ability! The universe will end, and you will be the supreme ruler of nothing! You shall be your own undoing, whether your own pawns defeat you or not! End this foolishness now, before it's too late for you!"

"Lies, lies, lies!" Janice swings at Chronos with her staff, and Chronos parries with his own. "I'm sick of all your lies! I don't care if I lose every last ounce of power I have if it means I get to ensure your eternal suffering!"

"We'll just have to see about that!" He pushes her back, then swings his staff into a wave of energy directed at her.

She dispels the wave with a slash of her own staff, then unleashes a beam of energy. Chronos is unable to dodge, and tries to defend with his arms. The beam impacts him, and forces him back a step. Janice begins to laugh as she increases the strength of her attack. Chronos begins to grunt as his struggle increases.

Silver shouts, "Chronos!" He takes up a large chunk of ice and flings it at Janice. Paying almost no notice, she easily blocks the projectile with a hand.

Chronos turns his head to Silver. "Don't worry about me. …I only need to keep her back…long enough for–"

In a flash of golden light, Super Sonic appears, needing less than a second to analyze the situation. At an impossible speed, he jets across the room and into Janice's staff, sending it flying from her hands and ending the attack. Only stopping for a moment, he begins another dash straight into the clock at her core. He crashes straight through the woody figure, leaving a gaping hole where the clock once was.

Janice looks down at the wound. Voice full of irritation, she turns around to face Sonic. "We shall settle this in _my_ realm." Suddenly, the entire form dissolves into dust.

Answering the hedgehogs' unspoken question, Chronos, again weakened by the attack, states, "That was not the true Janice. It was a projection, much like the ones I sent after all of you."

Zero barely acknowledges him, instead staring awestruck at the godlike figure of Super Sonic. Sonic breaks him out of the daze. "Let's finish this." He holds out his hands to the other two hedgehogs. They each put a hand up to one of his, and the other to each other, creating a triangle formation. Slowly, Sonic's golden light begins to transfer into the other two, who similarly begin to float into the air. Silver is his usual white-gold color. Zero turns a deep orange-gold, and his spikes appear to reverse their original angle, now jutting out straight back and then angling almost straight up. The Chaos Emeralds emerge from Sonic, and begin to orbit very slowly around the three golden hedgehogs. "Everyone ready?" The other two nod. "Chaos…"

The two repeat, "Chaos…"

All three finish, " _Control!_ " The seven Emeralds begin to glow brilliantly, until finally, another blood-red rift forms in the center of the hedgehogs. All four of them shout in unison, "The time is now!" One by one, each of them dashes into the rift, and Chronos follows after.

—–—

 **The Timestream**

The place that the hedgehogs arrive in might at first be mistaken for The Void. Besides the crimson light of the rift they came through, blackness lies all around. Occasionally, a single blue streak flashes past, temporarily lighting the area. Chronos speaks. "So long as timelines keep passing by…the universe can still be saved. There is still time independently flowing somewhere." The rift behind them closes, leaving the golden glow of the hedgehogs as the only source of light.

"That is where you are wrong, old man. You won't be saving anything. Your time is up." Another "timeline" streaks by, revealing the massive form of a transformed Janice. Her wings have grown to an incredible size, and have become even more tattered on the edges than Chronos' were. Her arms and upper body have grown large and muscular like the beastly Chonos, but the rest of the body remains proportionately normal. In the clock at her center, the Core Sapphire lies at the middle, with one Temporal Sapphire on each hour notch. She holds a staff in each hand. Within a moment, the light is gone, and Janice is hidden once more.

Sonic floats forward a short distance. "You're wrong. You are a liar, a traitor, and a power-hungry psychopath. Now, you're going to pay for your actions."

Janice's voice seems to emanate from everywhere at once. "Oh? And how do you propose to accomplish that? You no longer have the Sapphires to protect you from temporal powers. And I'm more powerful than ever. I can age each of you into dust just by thinking about it. But I'll tell you what. Get out of the way and let me fight Chronos, and I'll send you back to your ruined timelines. You won't feel a thing. You'll appear there, and then you'll never speak, move, or think ever again. You won't even learn that it's happened to you, because enough time will never pass for you to understand it. Painless."

Chronos speaks. "You know that would hardly be a fight. I can hardly stand in this form for how much damage I've sustained. You would destroy me in an instant."

"Yes, that's the idea. So, Sonic, Silver, Zero, do you accept?"

Now it's Zero's turn. "No. No deals. No exceptions. This is the end of the line."

"I couldn't agree more. This is where you die!" From a new location, a massive beam of blue energy is launched at the hedgehogs, creating a harsh light for just an instant. The hedgehogs are blinded by the sudden light, and shield their eyes. Around them, the seven Emeralds begin to orbit once more, bathing the area in their rainbow-colored light. The beam impacts the barrier created by the Emeralds, and scatters off in all directions. "What!?"

Silver responds, "You have underestimated the power of the Chaos Emeralds. You are not the only one with power here."

"You dare compare your pathetic power to mine!? I shall end you!" Just as Janice throws each of her staves, Sonic bursts forward at light speed. Though the Emeralds can no longer be seen, their colorful light remains. Sonic ducks and dives around the two spinning projectiles. Janice already has two more staves in her hands, and begins rapidly slashing them in succession, creating wave after wave of energy. Sonic skillfully dodges around each of them, but is taken by surprise as he is struck by another thrown staff. He is unharmed, but knocked back slightly, his momentum lost.

Unfazed, Sonic moves forward again, successfully diving around the second staff, and finally dashing straight into Janice's sundial, sending her reeling back, stunned. Next he goes in for a strike on the clock, knocking a Sapphire loose, which he snatches up before being forced away. As soon as he's recovered, he shouts, "Zero, now's your chance to get in close!"

Heeding Sonic's advice, Zero moves in for a close-quarters fight before Janice has a chance compose herself. "You are all fools," she says. "You only prolong your own suffering!" She swings a staff straight at Zero, who dodges out of the way, and goes in for a spinning strike on the clock. He rebounds off and begins the process again, dodging a claw from a massive hand and going in for another strike. The third time around, he is able to get in a series of successive strikes, finally stopping to grab a Sapphire with each hand, which he is able to rip from their places before being flung away like Sonic.

Silver moves forward to replace him. "I'll handle this!" Janice begins sending a flurry of waves at him, which he counters with psychic waves of his own. Next she flings her staves at him, which he catches in his psychic grasp and redirects to collide with her sundial. Then he directs a psychic wave directly at the clock, striking powerfully. He gets a psychic hold on three Sapphires, and rips them out and into his hands.

Without a word, Sonic dashes past Silver, back on a course to Janice. Janice throws, slashes, and now fires her beam at Sonic, but Sonic dodges all of it without a hit. Skipping the sundial, he dashes straight into the clock face, continuing to put power into moving forward after he's already been stopped, beginning to crack the entire clock. He manages to rip out another Sapphire before being forced away.

Now in a rhythm, Zero gets in close and is immediately faced with a beam attack. He barely gets out of the way before he finds a massive claw about to strike him. He shouts in desperation, "Time Control!" For just a moment, the hand stops. It suddenly jerks forward, and then stops again.

Janice demands in outrage, "What sort of trickery is this!? You can't control the time of a Time Lord!" Again her hand jerks closer to its target, the two powers of time clashing against each other.

"I guess I'm not as weak as you thought!" Zero moves in closer for a series of powerful blows to the clock face, widening the small cracks into great fissures. Again he grabs two Sapphires before being knocked away. Only four gems remain: at 10, 11, and 12 o'clock, and one at the core.

Wasting no time, Silver goes on the offensive, sending a flurry of psychic waves directed at Janice. She sweeps each of them out of her way with a staff, which Silver rips from her hand while she is distracted. He flings the staff around strikes the sundial with it. While she is stunned, he takes hold on the final three Sapphires around the clock, and pulls them to his hands.

The three golden hedgehogs meet back up. Each of them release their gathered Sapphires into the air, which begin to orbit around them. Their eyes turn blue a blue aura is added to their golden lights. They turn back to Janice. "This is your last chance."

At first, she doesn't respond. Suddenly, she begins to laugh. "Ah hahahaha! I've already absorbed all of the power I need from those pathetic gems! I still control the Core Sapphire! I have all of the power here!"

"You really don't understand." Sonic chuckles a bit. "You have nothing. Nothing that matters. And you never will, not the way that you are. People like you can never win. And do you know why?"

Zero comes forward to answer the question. "You're all alone. You've never had anyone truly on your side. You've had pawns. Allies, even. But us?"

Silver finishes, "We have friends. We have trust without bounds. And we have more power than just the sum of each of ourselves. You never had a chance."

Almost immediately, Janice resumes her maniacal laughter. "Hahahaha! You think that you have strength in numbers? Well, let me show you just how 'alone' I am!" Just as Chronos did before, Janice begins to move at an impossible speed from place to place, creating multiple images of herself. Not stopping at just three, she continues to jump to every imaginable location from every angle, creating dozens, if not hundreds of duplicates. All of them laugh in unison, "Hahahaha!" Out of the swarm, one Janice is discernable by the Core Sapphire which was not shared with the clones.

The hedgehogs turn to each other and nod in unison. "Let's finish this." As one, the three dash towards the real Janice, one arm each directed forward, coming together as if forming the point of a spear.

The horde of Janices begin their onslaught, sending out waves, beams, and staves from every angle. The hedgehog formation weaves, bobs, and dives, somehow evading every last attack. As they continue to pick up speed, a thick aura of swirling blue and gold forms around the spear shape, nearly concealing the hedgehogs underneath. Passing through one last tangle of beams, the tip of the spear impacts the dead center of the Core Sapphire, and continues to exert force forwards. Janice cries out, "No! _NO_!" The force of the attack drives the Sapphire through Janice's body and out the other side, completely shattering the clock face. The copies all fade to nothing as the real Janice falls.

Wasting no time, Chronos shouts, "Hurry! You must fix time before it's too late!"

The Core Sapphire floats in place. The three golden hedgehogs orbit around it. The seven Chaos Emeralds and twelve Temporal Sapphires orbit around them, each at a different angle. The trio direct their hands forward, holding them just in front of the Core Sapphire. Sonic begins, "Chaos…"

Silver adds, "Chaos…"

Zero continues, "Chaos…"

" _Control_!"

A single dot of pure white light appears in the very center of the Sapphire, which begins to expand, ever faster. First it encompasses the gem. Then the hands of the hedgehogs. Then their entire sphere of gems. And finally, the entire Timestream.

—–—

 **Zero's Vision**

Without a lapse in consciousness, the normal Zero opens his eyes, again finding himself in complete blackness. From everywhere at once, a chorus of voices speaking as one declare, "Welcome, Zero."

Zero takes on an odd expression of confusion, fascination, and awe. "Wh…where am I? Who are you?"

The chorus responds, "We are the Lords of Chaos. And we are inside of your own mind."

He is clearly displeased with having his questions so vaguely answered. He stops and thinks for a long moment. "What am I doing here?"

This time, the voices pause. "You mean that question in more ways than one. We have met you here to answer your questions. About yourself. About why you exist."

"You…you really do know the answer, don't you? Please…please tell me. I must know. What am I?"

"You already know much of the story for yourself. But it began when we brought about the creation of the Chaos Emeralds. It is the greatest mistake that we have ever made."

"Are you saying that I'm a mistake?"

"No. The Emeralds were the mistake. You have seen what their presence has done to your world." Suddenly, Zero appears to be surrounded by a hazy image of the city which he calls home, ruined and covered in ash. "But some of your world understood. Understood that they were not ready for this sort of power. And they observed something else. Natural life reacted to the gems in a way that the humans could not understand. Animals would draw near to them, try to protect them. It was decided that this was to be studied. If they could only figure out how the Emeralds drew animals to peace as the humans grew closer to war, then they might avoid their own destruction. Traditional research brought no conclusive results. Until a radical scientist proposed a radical idea."

"Robotnik."

"Correct. Robotnik proposed to create an entire new intelligent species. Or many. His first experiments were failures. Until he acquired a Chaos Emerald of his own. The unstable DNA of his creations could then be held together by Chaos Energy. He chose a simple hedgehog, a small, spiny, four-legged mammal, as the most viable subject. And so, you came to consciousness as the being you are now."

"So that's all I am? Some freak experiment?"

"No. You are so much more. You are something that has never existed before. Something perfect."

"Perfect?"

"Chaos is the natural order of the universe. That is why the simple animals behaved the way they did. And you, Zero, are more closely connected to Chaos than anything that has ever existed within your universe. And now, you have done something we didn't think possible. You have allowed us to communicate. No longer must we watch your world and hope things occur the way we wish them to. Your existence allows us to have a real effect. Your existence allows us to matter."

"What does this all mean for me? What do you expect me to do?"

"That is a question for you to answer. You live alone in a ruined world. What you are to do is anything you can to make that better."

For a long time, Zero goes silent, pondering all that he has been told. Finally, he speaks again. "What…what does that make you? What is your purpose? Are you mortal? Do you even exist?"

"We will explain all. But first, there is someone who wishes to speak with you."

Out of the still-lingering image of the Fallout Zone, a figure steps, unmistakably Chronos himself. "It is an honor to finally meet with you again, wise ones."

The voices respond, "The honor is ours, Chronos. How does eternity treat you?"

Chronos jokes back, "Well, it's as long as ever." He turns to face Zero. "But I came here to speak with you. You see…without Janice, I am in need of a new apprentice. The way you manipulated the power of the Sapphires out there, the way you controlled time…it was beyond anything that should be possible for a mortal."

The voices interject, "This is no ordinary mortal."

"Of course. I understand that, now that I have witnessed it firsthand. Zero, I want you to become my new apprentice. I shall make you immortal, and you shall oversee time with me for all eternity. What say you?"

Zero is taken speechless by the offer. "Uh–…I…" He looks upward in a hope for advice.

"The choice is entirely yours. You can do good no matter where you go."

He starts to look around at the foggy, ash-covered streets. "I…I'm humbled by your offer. But I refuse. I have my own world to fix. In my own time. And besides…I have a funny feeling…" Another figure appears out of the fog crumpled on the ground. Slowly, it begins to rise. It is none other than Janice.

"I…I…" She seems almost unable to speak. She doesn't look directly at anyone.

Chronos mutters with contempt, "What is _she_ doing in my presence?"

The voices answer, "Zero, this is your mind. With your thoughts, and our power, Janice was brought here. Now, explain what it is that you have in mind."

Zero looks to Janice. "Go on then. Tell him."

"I…I…"

"I said tell him!"

In involuntary fear, she cries back, "I'm sorry, I will!" Slowly, she turns to face Chronos, but still stares at her own feet. "G…great and mighty Lord Chronos, I…I humbly–"

"Out with it already!"

Shuddering, almost sobbing, she stutters out, "I'm s-s-sorry. I-I-I was wr-wr-wrong. I…I beg for your forgiveness, my lord!"

Chronos looks from Janice to Zero. "What sort of joke is this?"

To test a theory, Zero suddenly stomps his foot forward and lifts an arm as if to prepare a strike, and Janice involuntarily flinches in fear. He looks back to Chronos. "See how she fears me? There is no joke. She has been humbled. She wishes for her old position back, and I'm certain she's willing to do anything you ask to get it."

Chronos looks back to Janice. "Is this true?"

"…Only if you would have me, my lord."

All is silent. Chronos looks up to the voices, forwards to Zero and back to Janice. Finally, he speaks, "…You will return with me to the Timestream. We shall see if I decide to grant you any further mercies."

"Oh, thank you, my lord, you are kind, you are wise, you–"

"That's enough." He looks again to Zero. "You never cease to impress me, mortal. I would never have given Janice a second thought. You are strong, and you are merciful. I'll be sure to keep an eye on your timeline."

"Goodbye, Chronos." With that, Chronos and Janice turn around, and fade back into the hazy image around them. Zero looks back up to the air. "Now…tell me everything."

—–—

 **Silver's Vision**

Overwhelmed by the intense power around him, Silver drops to his knees. "The Lords of Chaos… You do exist…"

The voices respond, "Rise, Silver. We are not gods. You shall not bow to us."

Unsteadily, Silver rises once more. "I…I have so many questions… Where do I begin?"

"That is up to you."

He takes a deep breath. "How…no. Why…no, that's not it either. What…what…oh, I don't know! I always thought I knew so little, but now I'm here able to ask any question imaginable, I can't think of a single one!"

"Patience, young one. You do not need rush. Think. What do you want to know more than anything?"

Silver begins to think back. Finally, he comes to a certain question. "Why am I the final Controller? Why do I have to destroy the Chaos Emeralds?"

The voices are silent for a moment. Finally, "You have asked a question which we cannot answer."

"What? Why not?"

"We are not Chronos. We have seen all, but we do not see all to come. We are aware of possibilities, events of extreme Chaos which may come, but not in any certain manner. We experience time in a similar manner to yourself. Thousands of years ago, we met with Zero, the first Controller, in this same manner, even though he, at that time, shared the same last memory that you do now. We have long expected this day to come. If there is anything else that you have to ask, we shall do our best to answer."

Silver is stumped once more. He thinks back further. "I…I was never meant to meet Sonic and Zero, was I?"

"That depends on your point of view. If it helps your sense of logic to think in that way, then no, you were not."

"So…does that mean that I was supposed to be alone? To live a solitary life of protecting the Balance?"

"…You may not want to know the answer to that question."

"What? What do you mean by that?"

"To know what has been…what could have been…it may change the course of your life."

Silver thinks on this for a while. "I have to know."

"You, Silver, were a constant in the infinite possible events that led to your time. Not all of these timelines were so utopic as yours. In fact, a majority of them were not. Only in these timelines of ruin and destruction, there was another constant. A companion of yours. You would have known her as Blaze." In front of Silver, a hazy image appears of a cat with light-purple fur, with a red gem embedded in her forehead.

"Blaze…" Silver vaguely recalls the name that Sonic had said to him. "Not only did Sonic know me…he knew about her too. Which means…I must have gone back in time from one of these ruined futures with Blaze…and fixed the future…into how I know it. A future where Blaze no longer exists. She ended her own existence, and I never would have known."

"That statement is even more true than you realize. Do you now understand why we were so hesitant?"

"Yes…I suppose I do. But that does not matter now." He pulls out the locket that Zero found for him, and opens it. It is still empty on the inside. "I think I've figured out what I want to put in here. Can you help me with that?"

"Indeed, we can."

"Good. Then there is just one more thing."

—–—

 **Sonic's Vision**

"What does that mean? What are 'Lords of Chaos'?"

"The answer to such a question is not easily comprehensible. We do not exist within your universe as you understand it. We are outside. We have no contact with your universe without one such as yourself to speak through. Even then we can only speak to you now by your contact with so much Chaos Energy at once."

"So…what do you do, then?"

"We do many things. Long ago, we brought about the creation of the Chaos Emeralds. Just now, we altered your…rather sloppy Chaos Control."

"Altered it?"

"Yes. What you attempted to do would have closed all of the rifts in all time periods, preventing any of your travels through time from ever having occurred. That would be a problem. Just think of all that you and your friends have learned on this journey. All of that would have been lost. But through your attempt to alter reality, we were able to optimally reshape it. As far as history is concerned, all of your travels happened. But there were never any rifts. Just you three, on a mission which you would not specify. But those are all just our abilities. Our purpose…is to protect the Balance."

"Balance, what Balance?"

"The Balance of Chaos."

"I still don't understand, what does that mean?"

"It would seem that you still have much to discover. We shall try to make this as simple as possible. Chaos Energy, the source of the power of the Chaos Emeralds, exists in the form of the imbalance of opposites."

"Imbalance? How do ratios define energy?"

"Perhaps you may think of it as similar to electric charge. Every molecule of matter that exists in your universe is filled with countless protons and electrons, which you would never notice in your everyday life. That is because the positive and negative charges are in balance, negating each other. You only recognize an object as having charge and energy if there is an imbalance in these charges, if there is more negative than positive charge, or more positive than negative. The Balance of Chaos is not exactly the same, but the principle is similar. In everything, there is some Light, and some Darkness. This is the natural order of the universe. Everything seeks balance. Living organisms seek homeostasis, equal input and output, equal Light and Darkness. But just as an organism cannot truly reach homeostasis in its lifetime, the universe as a whole cannot naturally reach a state of True Chaos; a perfect Balance. It is more akin to a war. One side constantly seeking to overtake the other, always overcompensating, forcing the other side to retaliate in the same way. Our task, our reason for existing, is to bring the universe closer to True Chaos. Do you understand?"

Sonic stops to think about that. "I sure wish Tails were here. He'd understand."

"For now, you only need have a general idea to carry out your duty as Controller."

"There's that other buzzword again. You say that I am The Controller. What does that mean?"

"You, Silver, Zero, each of you are a Controller of Chaos."

"So…does that just mean that we can use Chaos Control?"

"Not necessarily. There is another friend of yours." A hazy image of Shadow the Hedgehog appears before him. "This one can use Chaos Control. But he is not a Controller. Zero was the first Controller. Chaos Energy was built into his very DNA. Eventually, Zero grew old, and died. It is a fact of life. But that connection to Chaos did not die with him. We did not allow it. His power was far too vital to the restoration of the Balance. We willed it to a new life form, who grew up, learned of that power, and eventually died as well. So the pattern has continued for thousands of years, until finally it has reached you."

"So…I have a part of Zero inside of me?"

"In a manner of speaking."

"I am this Controller, then. What does that mean for me? Are you saying that I have to be a slave to this Balance, just because you said so?"

"Not at all. As of yet, you have done your job magnificently. The one you know as Eggman…he is the threat to the Balance which you are faced with. You would never allow him to drag the world into Darkness. As Controller, that is the very definition of your job. All you are expected to do is live your life the way you always have. But now that you are informed, you can do it all _better_."

Sonic thinks about this for a long time. "It all makes such perfect sense. I have the ability to protect the world. So I should be the one to do it. I always did it…just because it felt right. And this is why. This is why I can do things that other people can't. This is why the Chaos Emeralds always appear where I need them most. This is why…just holding a Chaos Emerald feels so…right."

"Do you have any further questions?"

"Just one. You created the Chaos Emeralds. But what are they?"

"To fully answer such a question would take far too long. But we can say this. The crystalline structure of such gemstones are the only way in which something from our realm can exist within yours. To help lead towards the Balance of the universe, we took seven aspects of our own realm, condensed them into Emeralds of yours."

"Aspects?"

"There is no more specific way to explain it that you could possibly understand."

"I…I guess that's all, then. Do I just…leave, now?"

A new voice answers, "Not before I've had a word with you." From out of the darkness emerges Silver.

"Silver? What're you doing inside my head!?"

"The Lords of Chaos sent me here. Well, the future ones, anyways." He looks upwards. "They send their regards, by the way." The present Lords of Chaos don't answer. Silver looks back to Sonic. "I've figured it all out. How you already knew me when we first met. I know who Blaze is. She is a forgotten relic of an ended timeline."

"You really know all that? I…I wasn't even sure that it actually happened."

"And I've realized something else. I don't want to end up like Blaze. At any time, for any reason, my timeline could cease to exist. And my entire life will be forgotten, just like hers was. I don't want that to happen to me. That is why I'm giving you this." Silver drops his locket into Sonic's hands. "This used to be mine, and Zero found it for me. Now, I'm giving it to you. It ties us all together." Sonic begins to examine it carefully. He tries to open it, to no avail. "That won't work. It only opens to my psychic signature."

"Only you can open it? The what's the point of giving it to me?"

"There's something very special in there. But if you want to see it, I guess that just means we'll have to meet again someday."

Sonic smiles, understanding the meaning of the act. "You can count on it."

Silver sighs. "I'll be leaving now, then. Sonic…don't forget about me. Not this time." With that, he turns, and fades back into the darkness.

The voices again speak to Sonic. "Are you ready to leave?"

Sonic nods. "I am." Sonic himself seems to shrink away into nothingness as he leaves the realm of his own mind.

—–—

 **Epilogue**

Sonic wakes up with a start, panting. Tails immediately looks over at him from a desk he sits at. "Sonic, you're awake!"

Sonic sits upright in Tails' bed, holding his head in disorientation. "I…I was asleep?"

"I was starting to get really worried. I found you passed out right outside."

 _"Could…could it all have been a dream?"_ "But…what about the rifts?"

"Rifts? What rifts?"

Sonic looks out the window next to him. Everything is clear and sunny outside, with nothing out of the ordinary but a few piles of dirty snow. "Oh…it's nothing."

"Sonic, what happened? Are you feeling alright? Something seems…different about you."

Rather than answer, Sonic starts to stand up. Something clatters to the ground. He bends down to pick it up. It's Silver's locket. Silver's voice echoes in his mind, _"Don't forget about me. Not this time."_

"What's that?"

"Oh, this?" Sonic stares at the locket for a little while. "It's just something that a friend gave me." He sets it down on the desk.

"Oh, by the way…" Tails pulls out a small black communicator. "I found this thing in your ear. I must say, it's a really incredible piece of technology. I couldn't have built it any better myself. If I can make more of these, it could really change the future of long-distance communication. Where did you get it?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you. A lot of things happened to me, Tails. Not all of it makes sense. But…I have changed. For the better. I understand…the world. I understand myself. And it's time that I make some changes to my life. Set my priorities straight." He looks back out the window at the dirty snow. "Sorry our snow day didn't work out too well…"

Tails smiles. "That's alright. You know, I'd prefer a warm, sunny day at the beach anyways."

Sonic chuckles. "As long as there's no swimming, I can agree with that."

They both laugh. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Sounds like a plan, then. This summer, we're having a beach day. No exceptions."

"It's a deal!" Sonic moves to walk outside, and Tails follows him out. Silver's locket still lies on the desk. It is seen more and more closely, until nothing else can be. The top of it fades away, revealing a photograph on the inside. Silver stands, flanked on either side by Sonic and Zero, arms wrapped around each other's shoulders, laughing and enjoying what they thought would be their last moments together.

 **The end of one tale…**

 **And the beginning of another.**


	13. S0 E9: Black Cloak Begins

**Previously in the Sonic the Hedgehog Series…**

[Shadow]: ( _As seen in Sonic Adventure 2. He speaks to Maria in his memories.)_ " _Maria, I just don't know anything anymore. I often wonder why I was created…What my purpose is for being here. Maybe if I go down there, I'll… I will find the answers. Maybe…_ "

—–—

[Maria]: _(As seen in Sonic Adventure 2. She pleas in Shadow's memories.)_ " _For all the people…on that planet…give them a chance…to be happy. Let them live for their dreams. Shadow, I know you can do it_."

—–—

[Sonic]: _(As seen in Sonic Adventure 2. He places a gold ring, one of Shadow's Inhibitor Rings, in Rouge's hands.)_ "He was what he was. A brave and heroic hedgehog."

—–—

[G.U.N. Soldier]: _(As seen in Shadow the Hedgehog. He salutes, speaking to the G.U.N. High Commander.)_ "The Black Aliens have hit six major cities around the world…Among them, Westopolis has received the heaviest casualties, due to its weakened defense system. Downtown Westopolis has been almost completely destroyed…"

[Commander]: "If you find Shadow with the Black Aliens…then kill them all!"

—–—

[The President]: _(As seen in Shadow the Hedgehog. He stares at a photo of Sonic and Shadow which lies on his desk. Next to the photo is a gold medal hung up on a small stand.)_ "This planet was once saved from tyranny and annihilation by you two heroes…"

—–—

[Mephiles]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog.)_ "Humanity wasn't just jealous of your power. They feared it… Come with me, Shadow. Let us punish this foolish world of humanity."

[Shadow]: "That's absurd. Whatever it is you want to do, you can do it alone. I determine my own destiny."

—–—

[Shadow's Radio]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog.)_ "Transmission from HQ. There's an SOS coming from Dr. Eggman's base. Our last communication with our agent was 26 hours ago. We expect an immediate rescue…"

[Shadow]: "Understood. Initiating the mission now."

—–—

[Shadow]: _(As seen in_ _S0 E5_ _.)_ "G.U.N. and I are no longer involved…"

[Sonic]: "Where will you go?"

[Shadow]: "…Somewhere I can make a difference. On my own."

—–—

[Shadow]: _(As seen in Shadow the Hedgehog. He holds an old photo of Maria and Prof. Gerald.)_ "Goodbye forever…Shadow the Hedgehog." _(He turns away, tossing the picture behind him and letting it flutter to the ground.)_

 **And now, the continuation…**

* * *

 **Westopolis City**

In a dim alleyway between two tall buildings, a woman walks, carrying a small purse. "Excuse me, miss?" She turns around to see a very large man addressing her.

"Wh-what do you want?"

"Oh, nothing much. You, see, it's just that The Boss decided that he needs a little bit more out of you. You understand, I'm sure?"

"B-but I already payed my dues this month. Why does he want more?"

"Ooh, I'd be careful if I were you. It's not a very good idea to question The Boss. The Boss gets what The Boss wants. So, are you going to hand it over?" He pounds a fist into an open hand. "Or am I going to have to take it from you?"

"P-please, I can't afford another payment, not yet!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way." He begins to take several steps closer to her.

She cries out, "Somebody, help me!" Suddenly, a small, red projectile sticks into the floor between them, thrown from high above.

A deep, rumbling, artificially disguised voice shouts "Hold it right there!" Both of the humans look up, surprised, to the source of the voice. High on the top of the building, a silhouetted figure stands, with a tattered cloak billowing in the wind. The figure leaps from the roof, dives through the air, and lands gracefully on the ground behind the man.

The man turns to face his own assailant. The figure has the height of an animoid, but is covered head-to-toe in a skin-tight black suit. Outside of the suit is a dirty, tattered cloak worn around the shoulders, its hood up and shadowing the eyes. He also wears a pair of dark red gloves. The man starts to panic, "Hey, hold up, this all just one big–"

"Don't play games with me." The figure looks back to the woman. "Get out of here. Go on, go. This man won't be bothering you ever again."

"Who…who are you?"

"I'm no one. Now get out of here." She obeys, and runs off. He turns back to the man. "Is this how you get your kicks? Stealing from innocent people? Disgusting."

The man starts to back away in fear. "No, it's not that, it's…The Boss, he–"

"Just can it already. You and I both know that King didn't ask you for anything. You just wanted to get him a little more than he was expecting. To save your own behind from some other slip-up, I assume?"

"You, you don't understand, he, he, he has my family, if I don't please him then he'll, he'll–"

"I know all about you and your family. Now I'm only going to ask this once. Where is King?"

"I-I don't know where–"

He grabs the man by the shirt collar. "Answer the question!"

"I swear, I don't know! I've never seen him face-to-face. But there is…a messenger. It's the same man every time. I don't know his name."

"Do you know where I can find him?"

"I'm supposed to meet him at this time in a week. The corner of 25th street and Emerald Way. I don't know anything else, I swear!"

"I believe you. Now get out of here."

"The Bo-…King…. My family, he'll–"

"He won't get the chance. I'll make sure of it. Now go. Take your family, and get as far away from Westopolis as you possibly can."

"He'll find us. He always finds them…"

"Not if I have anything to say about it."

"…Thank you…stranger. Please, tell me who you are. Who, do I tell my children, saved us?"

"I don't have a name. But some call me…the Black Cloak."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 9**

 **Black Cloak, Part 1: Black Cloak Begins**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **March 14th, 1 year B.E.**

 **Six days later**

The park is lively and sunny. Leaves rustle in trees and the grass sways at the touch of the near-Spring winds. Birds chirp, and a nearby brook babbles softly. In the center of the park, a white-haired man in uniform sits casually on a bench. One of his eyes is a turquoise-green, the other a reddish-brown. It is the G.U.N. High Commander.

"Pretty nice place you've got here." The unmistakable voice of Sonic the Hedgehog comments with just a hint of sarcasm. He walks into view, looking all around. "I don't see a single place to hide a camera. So where are the microphones? Hidden under the bench maybe?" He actually bends down and looks under the bench to answer the the question for himself.

"Sonic, I'm so glad that you agreed to join me here today." The Commander indicates the spot on the bench next to him. "Please, have a seat."

Sonic ignores the request. "So tell me, how'd you get every last person out of such a nice place on such a nice day? I mean, obviously you can't let anyone else hear anything important coming out of your mouth. But you tried to make me feel more comfortable by suggesting it was a public place. Clever."

The Commander sighs. "Sonic, I know that you still harbor some resentment towards G.U.N. for trying to capture you, and you have every right to. But we won't get anything done here unless we agree to start trusting each other. So please." He indicates the seat again. "Sit down."

Reluctantly, Sonic takes a seat on the bench. "So whaddaya want?"

"Well, let's start with this." He pulls out a small tablet device, and pulls up a video file. It shows an overhead view of Sonic and Shadow facing each other, talking. There is no sound. Suddenly, the image of Sonic leaps at Shadow, attempting to hit him. The two move offscreen for a moment, and then Sonic is sent flying the other way, hitting the back wall. After talking for a while longer, Shadow turns to leave. He stops to say one last thing, and then the video ends. The two viewers look to each other. "This security footage was recorded about three weeks ago. That hedgehog in there with Shadow…whoever he is…broke into a top secret base to get there, just to talk to Shadow by the looks of it. What do you make of all this?"

Sonic seems to understand the code that the Commander speaks in. "I'd say…that guy sure looks a lot like me."

"Our experts came to the same conclusion. But, in the interest of peace, and to avoid repeating past mistakes, we agreed to talk to you about it first. So…where were you, three weeks ago?"

"Hmm…" Sonic thinks back "Well, I've been moving around a lot over the past couple months, helping out wherever I can. Three weeks ago…I was somewhere around the west coast, I think."

"Anyone who can confirm this?"

"Oh, only a few thousand people in the city who saw me. I'm sure you could ask them, if you'd like."

"That won't be necessary." The Commander takes the file and drags it into an icon of a trash bin. "There. That was the only existing copy of that video. It no longer exists. Another symbol of friendship, if you will." Sonic says nothing. "On to our next order of business, then. What did Shadow say in there?"

"How should I know? I was on the west coast, remember?"

"Yes, of course. I mean the question hypothetically. You see—this information is highly, _highly_ classified—this is the very last that was seen of Shadow before he defected from G.U.N.. You understand how important of an operative he is. It's important that we learn why. You know Shadow well. What do you suppose that he would have said? Where would he have gone?"

"Well…hypothetically, of course, I _imagine_ that he would have left G.U.N.…because he wasn't accomplishing what he wanted to do there. So he would have gone…somewhere that he thinks he could make a difference. On his own. So…where did he go?"

"That brings us to our third order of business. Once again, I cannot stress to you how classified this information is. Shadow the Hedgehog has gone missing."

"What!?"

"You heard right. He hasn't been seen or heard from in weeks. As far as we can tell, he's disappeared from the face of the planet."

"How is that possible? Can't you track him?"

"We were, for a while. We witnessed him get as far as Westopolis. And then…nothing. We're ready to begin an investigation. But we knew that you would want to know this…to handle it."

"You assume correctly. When can I start?"

"Right away, if you'd like." He pulls out a folder full of documents and files, and hands it to Sonic. "Here's everything we know about it. But be warned. There's a reason we haven't simply stormed the city. It's a dangerous place. Crime rates are the highest in the world. If we sent a squadron of soldiers in there, we'd be declaring war. People would get hurt. So watch yourself. Try not to tick off the wrong people."

"Is that all?"

"Just one more thing. We're not going to let you handle this completely without us. We'll send an operative in after you. Keep an eye out."

"Just don't let him get in my way. I'm going to find Shadow, with or without you."

"And tell him that G.U.N. wants him back?"

"We'll see." Sonic gets up and starts to walk away.

"Sonic!" He stops and looks back. "I hope you'll keep everything that we're trying to do in mind. G.U.N. is changing. We're not the same corrupt organization that shut down the ARK. We aren't even the same organization that tried to arrest you. We don't want you as an enemy."

"I'm not your enemy. We're on the same side. We always have been. But that doesn't mean I have to like you."

"That's the part we're trying to change."

"You really want me to start trusting you? Then tell me. What's your name?"

The Commander almost involuntarily responds, "Classified."

"That's what I thought." He resumes his walk off.

The nameless Commander tries to stop him one last time. "Sonic. Bring Shadow home, alright? Do whatever it takes. He deserves that much, after everything I put him through." Sonic just keeps walking.

—–—

 **Westopolis: Outskirts**

Sonic mounts the top of a grassy hill, and leans back against a tall tree. The sun is just beginning to set. Just a short distance beyond, behind a line of trees, lies the row of skyscrapers marking the entrance to the city. "Westopolis city. It's been a while." He can't help but think back to the sight of aliens raining from the sky. He sighs and shakes his head. "Shadow…everything's so different now than it used to be. I'm entering a world that you've been a part of your whole life." He pulls out a sparkling blue Chaos Emerald. "I could really use your help right about now. What a time you chose to go and disappear…" A strong wind begins to blow, rustling his spikes, the grass at his feet, and the leaves high above him.

His thoughts are interrupted as a piece of paper blown by the wind collides with his leg. Rather than let it blow away, he pick it up and looks at it. It appears to be a newspaper article. It reads, "Vigilante Assaults Citizens—Hooded assailant reported threatening civilians, wields dangerous weapons." Sonic looks the article over and nods. "Ugh. I see what the Commander was talking about." He looks back up to the city. Dusk approaches as the sun sets further. "Well, I guess it's time to get started. Here I come, Shadow." In the footsteps of the one he searches for, Sonic runs off down the hill and towards the city.

It's not long before he makes it onto a road, and past a sign that reads "Welcome to Westopolis." Scratched in by hand underneath are the words, "Turn back now." Sonic skids to a stop. In front of his path lies four stout robots with guns for hands. Each one wears a cape, and crown on its head. "What the!? Robots!? Is Eggman hanging around here, or what?"

The robots declare in unison, "Halt! State your name and business."

"Sonic the Hedgehog. I'm searching for a missing person. What's it to you?"

"Private investigation is not permitted in Westopolis. Entry is denied. Have a nice evening."

"Denied? Oh, I don't think so." He starts to walk closer to the line of robots. "Outta my way."

"Halt! Entry is denied. Leave now, or we will open fire." They point their weapons at him.

Sonic keeps walking. "Go ahead. Make my day."

Suddenly, a small red projectile sticks into the floor between Sonic and the robots, thrown from high above. Without waiting for any further indication, the robots turn and open fire in the direction the object was thrown from. The Black Cloak leaps from the rooftop to avoid the gunfire. Landing on the ground, he immediately leaps at one of the robots, crushing it with a powerful kick. Immediately he turns and throws another red projectile at the next one, nailing it in the center and disabling it as well. Meanwhile, Sonic has already struck a robot of his own with a well aimed spin attack. He bounces off and directs another right at the final machine.

Everything is silent again. Sonic has landed quite close to the first red projectile. He only gets an instant to look at it before Black Cloak snatches it back up, grumbling in his disguised voice, "Great, it's you."

"I see you know who I am. I'm afraid I haven't had the same pleasure."

"The people call me the Black Cloak."

"The vigilante in the news, I presume?"

"You can't trust the news. Not if it was written here."

"Well, you would say that, wouldn't you?"

"You've seen for yourself. Those patrol bots would have killed you. _He_ controls everything here."

"And who exactly is ' _he_ '?"

"His name is Wolfric King, usually goes by 'The Boss'. After the Black Arms attack, this city was in shambles. But almost immediately, King brought forth a series of machines he claimed were capable of fixing the city's infrastructure. He's a mechanical genius, supposedly. With the government so busy with the rest of the world, it wasn't hard for King to gain the people's trust, and seize power. He's a madman, a tyrant, a sadist. And I'm going to stop him."

"Sounds rough. But I've got my own problems to deal with." Sonic resumes his walk into the city, throwing up a hand behind him in farewell.

"Maybe I didn't make myself clear. You aren't wanted here."

Sonic stops and looks back. "Yeah, the robots made that clear enough."

"They aren't the only ones. I don't need some _hero_ getting in my way."

"Well maybe _I_ didn't make _myself_ clear. Leaving's not an option."

Black Cloak takes a fighting stance. "I can't let you go any farther."

"I'm sorry you feel that way."

Black Cloak wordlessly leaps in for a strike. Sonic dives back out of the way and delivers an uppercut, knocking Black Cloak back. On the offensive, Sonic charges a Spindash. Black Cloak catches the spinning ball in his hands, and, with a struggle, throws it the other way. Simultaneously, each of them clenches a fist, leaps at the other, and strikes them across the face. Sonic lands on the ground, panting. He wipes off the corner of his mouth. On the opposite side of the road, Black Cloak pants as well. He turns back to face Sonic. "You…you're stronger than I r–…than I expected."

"You're…not so bad yourself. But…I'm not giving up. So you can let me through…or we can keep fighting like this all night."

"You're right. That would be a waste…of time and energy. Whatever it is you want here…go ahead and try. Just don't get in my way."

"Wouldn't dream of it. You–…" Sonic looks around, realizing that somehow, Black Cloak has already disappeared. The last sliver of light from the sun disappears as night sets in. "Who is that guy?"

—–—

 **Westopolis: Downtown**

Sonic opens the door of a shabby-looking building. From inside, a somewhat portly man behind a desk declares, "Welcome, honored guest, to the Westopolis Ho…tel… You…you're Sonic the Hedgehog! _The_ Sonic the Hedgehog! In _my_ hotel!" He runs out from the desk and begins to furiously shake Sonic's hand. "Oh, it is such an honor to meet you, I–"

"I'm flattered, but I'm here on business. I need a room."

The hotel owner lets go and clears his throat. "Yes, of course. We would be glad to have you stay here, free of charge."

"No, that won't be necessary. I have the Rings, trust me." To prove it, Sonic takes out a handful of sparkling Gold Rings.

Reluctantly, the owner takes the payment. "My, you are as kind and generous as you are heroic." He goes back behind the desk and pulls out a room key. "Your room will be on the sixth floor, number twenty-five. If there's anything else you need, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask."

Sonic thinks about this offer for a moment. "…What can you tell me about the Black Cl–"

The owner suddenly puts a hand around Sonic's mouth. "Shh, shh." He looks around frantically, making sure no one else heard. After a moment, he breathes a sigh of relief, and lets go of Sonic. "Please, come with me."

Sonic seems confused, but agrees, and follows the man down a staircase into a dim basement. The man closes the door behind them. Immediately, Sonic demands, "What was that all about!?"

"You have to be careful around these parts. You can't speak that name. He has ears everywhere."

"King?"

The man nods. "He has more control here than anywhere else in the city. Downtown Westopolis was almost completely destroyed in the attack, so that's where he first started. In fact…this building wouldn't be standing if it weren't for him. I owe him my livelihood, so he expects complete loyalty from people like me. Are you…are you here to stop him?"

Sonic sighs. "King sounds like a pretty bad guy. But no. He's not why I'm here."

"I see…"

"So…what can you tell me about Black Cloak?"

"The Black Cloak…no one knows who he is. No one's really sure how long he's been here either. His name has only become well-known over the past week or so. But some people claim to have seen him before that. Rumors and legends have been going back for years of a hooded figure who appears in the night. But now, he's trying to leave a message. He says that he's going to take down King, all on his own. No one knows why."

"What does he do?"

"It seems like he focuses on stopping small-scale injustices. Like theft, or unfair treatment by the police robots, that kind of thing. But he always tries to pull some kind of information wherever he can. He learns a lot about what goes on the city that way, he always seems to know what's happening, and when."

"I see. I'm here in Westopolis looking for someone who went missing. Do you think…?"

"If anyone knows where your friend is, it's him."

Sonic thinks on this for a while. "Thank you. I'll tell you if I need anything else." He turns and leaves back up the stairs.

—–—

 **Westopolis: King Industries HQ**

A pair of yellow pupils stare out from the shadows. Their owner speaks in a gruff voice, almost like a snarl, "I must say, I wasn't expecting to ever see _you_ around here. You're practically a legend in the robotics community. Not that I'm jealous, of course. I'm quite proud of my own robots, you see. The perfect balance of independent will and unwavering obedience. I understand you've had a few problems with that in the past? But I digress. So tell me, what's a nice man like yourself doing in a place like this, Doctor Eggman?"

Across the table, sitting in front of a window dozens of stories in the air, is the Doctor himself. "I'm glad you asked, Mr. King. You see, there's a very special building material I'm in the interest of purchasing. Something that only you can provide."

"Ah, I see. And tell me, what makes this material so important to you?"

"To you, it is simply a durable metal. But to me…if my calculations are correct…it is means of beating an unbeatable technique."

"Unbeatable, you say?"

"Tell me, how would you defend against an opponent who can warp anywhere in an instant?"

"I see your problem. I do hope you understand, though, this is no common element, almost impossible to manufacture. It'll cost you. Especially if you want enough to make any real difference."

"Very well. I believe that fifty thousand should cover it?"

"Rings?"

"No. Robots."

King is silent for a moment. "…I like the way you think, Doctor. But I'm afraid that won't quite cover it. You understand, I'm capable of making my own robots."

"Yes, I assumed as much. Which is why I brought a little extra." Eggman pulls out a glowing turquoise Chaos Emerald. "Accept the deal, and it's all yours." He places it down on the table.

"You have yourself a deal, Doctor." From the shadows where King sits, a metallic arm and claw reaches out to grab the Emerald, and holds it up into the air. Finished examining the gem, King's robotic arm retracts back into the darkness. "This may just be the beginning of a wonderful partnership."

The two engineers each let out a maniacal laugh, King's much like a high-pitched bark. "Hahahahaha!"

 **To be Continued…**


	14. S0 E10: Black Cloak Rises

**Westopolis City: Black Cloak's Cavern**

Somewhere deep underground, the Black Cloak sits in a meditative stance on a flat stone platform. At his feet lies a glittering white Chaos Emerald. Not far out in front of him, the stone platform ends in a steep cliff, dropping down an immeasurable distance. At his side, a small stream flows, sourced by a soft waterfall down the side of the smooth rock wall behind him, and flowing out over the cliff in front of him. The water produces the only sound in the room, save for an odd, quiet static.

The Black Cloak takes a deep breath in, and out. The creek continues to babble, and the static begins to crackle a bit. He takes another breath. Without opening his eyes, he reaches out and slowly picks up the Emerald. He holds it close to him, and takes another breath. He begins to tighten his grip. He takes yet another breath, this one shuddering a bit. He continues to hold tighter and tighter, as if to crush the gem with his hand. Suddenly, he shoots to his feet and chucks the Emerald straight at the ground. "Arrgh! Why won't you work!?"

The gem makes a pleasant _tink_ sound as it bounces across the stone floor and comes to a stop. Black Cloak pants heavily in anger, but slowly begins to calm down. He takes one last deep breath, and walks over to pick up the Emerald once more. He stares deeply into it. "What was I even expecting…? Nothing's changed…not yet."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 10**

 **Black Cloak, Part 2: Black Cloak Rises**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 **Westopolis City: Downtown**

Sonic appears to be on the phone in his hotel room. The sun has only just recently risen outside. There is nothing particularly lavish about the room. There are two single beds, both a bit torn, one of them recently slept in. On the nightstand between them is an old lamp with a slightly dirty lampshade, and the old phone which Sonic uses. "Hello, Vector? It's Sonic, I– … Whaddaya mean 'Sonic who'? Sonic the Hedgehog! … Yeah, I have a job for you and the Chaotix. … Really? Oh, fine, I can pay. … Yeah, a missing person. … Last seen in Westopolis, that's where I am now. … Westopolis costs Double!? … Yes, I know how hard it is to get in. Fine, whatever. … You can meet me here, I don't intend to step back and let you do all the work. … Alright, how much is that gonna be? … What!? You want me to pay you how much!? … Even I don't have that many Rings! … Your loss, _pal_!" He slams the phone back down on the hook. He shakes his head and sighs. "Guess I'm on my own, then."

Just at that moment, a knock comes on the door. Sonic looks at the door in slight confusion, but he shrugs and walks up to it. He turns the knob and opens the door.

Waiting on the other side is Rouge the Bat. "Sonic!? They told me I'd be meeting an undercover operative!"

Sonic shrugs. "So, you're the backup operative, Rouge? Well, G.U.N. isn't very big on the whole 'honesty' thing." He opens the door wider. "Come on in."

She accepts the invitation, and immediately begins looking around. She comments sarcastically, "This is quite a place you've got here."

"Actually, it's supposed to be one of the nicer inconspicuous places in the city."

"Pretty rough city. So, who were you on the phone with?" Sonic gives her an odd look. "What, I could hear you from halfway down the hall. You certainly didn't sound too happy."

"Oh. That was the Chaotix, I wanted to bring them in on the mission." He shakes his head. "If greed were gold, those three could retire in luxury."

"Hey, careful who you talk down on greed to. I'm a jewel thief, remember? Besides, we don't need those losers."

"Hey, the Chaotix may be unorthodox, but they're good at what they do. They single-handedly cleared the name of Professor Gerald, after the entire world thought he was a genocidal lunatic. That takes some doing. I trust them."

"Yeah, whatever." She sighs. "We're avoiding what's important here. Have you gotten any sign of Shadow yet?"

He shakes his head. "Nothing yet. But there's…a lead I'm looking to follow."

"Well, I won't get in your way, then. I'll start taking a look around town, see what I can dig up."

"Just don't let the robots catch you. 'Private investigation is not permitted in Westopolis'."

"Trust me, I know all about it."

"Good. Let's get started, then." The two turn and leave the room. Through the grimy window, on the roof of the building across the street, a distant figure also turns to leave.

—–—

 **Central Westopolis**

Sonic stands high atop a building, perhaps the tallest in the whole city. Behind him, a huge red sign reads, "The Daily News." Behind the sign is an incredible view of a great city, full of more tall buildings, and crisscrossing roads. But in the direction that Sonic stares off into, a different story is told. Just as many buildings are in shambles as in fair repair. Sections of road are torn from the ground, lying in rubble or twisted into all sorts of impossible ramps and loops. Massive fissures in the ground appear regularly, just a few of them with makeshift bridges stretched across. Wrecked cars still lie on many of the undamaged streets.

"What are you doing here?" The Black Cloak stands behind Sonic, cloak billowing in the wind.

Sonic doesn't seem surprised at his sudden appearance. "The fact that you're here tells me you already know the answer to that question."

"How did you know I would come?"

"It's a pretty tall building. You can see the whole city from here. Look." Sonic points off to an area on the outskirts of the city, with a nearby welcome sign. "You can even see where we fought those robots together. If someone were in trouble, there or anywhere else in the city…you could see it from here. Seems like a pretty good spot for your line of work."

"It's certainly not the tallest building." He points off to another building not far away, on the border of the thriving city and the ruined one. Many stories taller than the one they stand on now, the sign reads, "King Industries."

"I figured you wouldn't be thrilled if you had to hang out there often."

"You aren't wrong about that." He is silent for a moment. "…I saw that you've brought a friend in with you. She shouldn't be here. It's too dangerous."

"So you've been spying on me? No wonder you got here so quickly. Rouge can handle herself just fine. There's someone else I'm worried about. That's why I'm here. That's why I want your help."

"Help from a dangerous vigilante like me, for the great Sonic the Hedgehog? You must be desperate."

"I'm not that kind of person anymore. There are things that matter a whole lot more than my reputation. Like my friends." Sonic pulls out the folder the Commander gave to him, full of everything known about Shadow. He tosses it forward, and it slides across the building, coming to a stop at Black Cloak's feet. He picks it up and begins looking through it. "His name is Shadow the Hedgehog, you've probably heard of him. Especially around these parts. He went missing a few weeks ago, without a trace."

Black Cloak stays silent for a long moment. "…And you think this 'Shadow' is here, in Westopolis?"

"It's the only lead we have."

Black Cloak tosses the folder back. "I don't do personal jobs. I have bigger things to worry about. But I'll keep an eye out. If I see any sign of your friend, I'll be sure to tell you. Do you have anything else to waste my time with?"

"Are you sure you don't know anything about him? Where he might be?"

"I'm sure that I haven't seen his face since…since before I started working here."

"If I ever need your help again, can I meet you here?"

Black Cloak turns and starts to walk away. "Don't count on it."

"But how will I find you!?"

He stops on the edge of the building and looks back. "You won't." With that, he leaps off the side. Sonic runs up to the edge and looks down after him, just in time to see him pull out some sort of grappling gun, which he fires at some distant object, and swings out of sight and to safety.

—–—

 **Downtown Westopolis**

"Private investigation is not permitted in–" Sonic wastes no time in crushing the police bot.

"Just can it already."

"Having fun there, Sonic?"

Sonic turns around to see Rouge standing behind him. "I certainly didn't see you stepping in to help."

"You looked like you had it covered. So, how did that lead of yours turn out?"

"Nothing yet, but I'm still looking into it. Did you turn up anything?"

"Oh, only _this_." She pulls out a piece of paper with a lot of small writing on it, and an illegible signature on the bottom.

"What is it?"

"It's a proof of purchase, for a house in Downtown Westopolis, payed in full by one Shadow the Hedgehog. It was a steal of a deal too, I'm impressed."

"What? Shadow bought a house?"

"Hey, I'm as surprised as you are." She looks up at the sky, and the afternoon sun. "It's not far from here, and we've got time. You wanna go take a look?"

"What're we waiting for? Let's go!"

—–—

 **Shadow's House**

Sonic pounds a fist on the old wooden door, one among many in the dim, litter-strewn alleyway. "Shadow! Shadow, are you in there!?" He starts knocking again. "Shadow, open up!" He gives it up with a sigh. "Well, it was worth a shot." His hand goes down to the doorknob, but it doesn't budge. "Locked."

"Stand aside." Rouge steps forward. "No locked door can stand in the way of Rouge the Bat, government spy and world-famous treasure hunter!" She kneels down and starts examining the doorknob and lock, as if preparing to pick it. Suddenly, she leans back and kicks the door down in one blow. Sonic gives her a surprised look. She shrugs. "Whoops, it just opened on its own. These darned old doors don't keep out anything." She goes right in, and Sonic follows.

The falling door had kicked up a massive cloud of dust, which only just begins to settle. In every room, a thick layer of this dust covers the floor. The living room they stand in is almost completely empty, save for a stained, tattered couch, and a tall old lamp that doesn't appear to be plugged in. The ugly wallpaper is peeling off of the wall in several places.

Rouge comments, "Ugh, I guess I was wrong about that deal. You couldn't pay me to buy a place like this."

"There's no sign that Shadow was ever here. Not even footprints in the dust."

"You keep looking around here, I'll check the next room over." She walks out of the room.

Sonic starts to take a closer look around. After nothing catches his eye, he begins to walk around, careful not to stir up too much dust. He stops near the back of the room, in front of the couch, and bends down to look at the floor. A few feet out in front of him, he notices two large depressions in the dust. He slowly circles around to the other side of the marks. Finally, he steps onto them. Each is almost exactly the same size as the soles of his shoes, clearly left by another pair of feet. He looks around from this new vantage point, hoping to notice something new from the position where this last person stood. Nothing is within immediate reach. No special pattern can be seen on any of the walls, or the floor, from this new angle. He crouches down again to look at the floor. It is paneled with wood in a regular pattern underneath the dust. Left with nothing else, Sonic reaches down and begins to slowly feel across the seams between the wood panels.

"Hey, Sonic!" Sonic gets up and turns to walk into the room where Rouge has been searching. On the floor, just a few inches from where Sonic's hand had been feeling, four much smaller, almost unnoticeable marks in the dust exist over a seam, perhaps made by a group of fingers.

The room Rouge searches in appears to be a kitchen, just as dusty, with tile floors, and a few overhanging cabinets in a state of disrepair. "Take a look at what I found," Rouge invites. She proudly displays a softly glowing, purple Chaos Emerald.

"Where did you find that?"

"It was just sitting there, right here on this counter." She indicates the countertop she stands next to. She takes out something else, a sparkling yellow Chaos Emerald of her own. "And now I have _two_ of these beauties."

Sonic ignores the second comment. "There's no way! Why would a Chaos Emerald just be sitting there?"

"Well…what if…what if Shadow left it here on purpose, for us to find? What if it's some kind of message, a clue to help us find him?"

Sonic thinks on that for a while. "…No, I don't think so."

"Well, why not?"

"Just think about it for a minute. Based on what you're suggesting, Shadow had to have been aware that he was going to disappear, and that we'd be looking for him. That means one of two things. Either he knew that he was in some kind of danger, that he might disappear against his own will…or he disappeared on purpose. If he were in danger, he would have kept the Emerald for himself, he has better use of it than either of us do, he could have used it to escape later. If he wanted to disappear…then why would he leave something to help us find him? He wouldn't want to be found."

"I guess you're right… But, what does that leave, then? What is the Emerald doing here? Do you have any idea at all?"

Sonic sighs. "Maybe…no, it couldn't be. I've got nothing."

They're both silent for a while. "…I think we've seen all we can here. Let's get going." The two make their way outside silently. The sun has almost completely set. As they leave, they pass a street sign that reads "Emerald Way."

—–—

Complete darkness has ensued. Black Cloak stands on the top another building, he and his billowing cloak silhouetted against the full moon. Below him, the intersecting street signs read "25th St." and "Emerald Way." Just on the other side of the road, one of the many great fissures of city lies. He says to himself, "It should be any moment now…" He continues to wait, staring down at the intersection. After a while, a pair of footsteps can be heard, slowly approaching. Soon, a person in a hood steps into view, walking slowly. The person stops under the street sign, and looks around. "That has to be him." Black Cloak leaps off of the building and lands silently behind the hooded person. "Looking for someone?"

An odd voice comes from the hood, without turning around. "That depends…"

"On what?"

"Nevermind." The person in the hood begins to walk away.

"Hey!" The person stops. "I know that you are a messenger for King. I want to know where his hiding place is."

"How unfortunate." The person turns around, revealing a face of something that is not a person at all. It is mechanical and skull-like, wearing atop its head a single crown, the mark of King. But it also has several mechanical protrusions coming from its upper-lip, resembling the long mustache of Eggman. It lifts and points its arm at him, revealing an attached gun. It fires, and Black Cloak barely dives out of the way in time, throwing one of his own signature red projectiles, which buries itself deep into the robot's skull. For the first time, a small part of the projectile can be seen clearly. It is flat, like a throwing star, and a single curved protrusion like a spike can be seen coming out of its semi-circular center.

The robot lifts its gunless hand to its face, rips out the projectile, and tosses it to the side, down into the fissure. It lifts its gun-arm up for another shot. Black Cloak is shocked by the robot's tenacity.

"Look out!" Sonic the Hedgehog slams a spin attack into the robot, knocking it to its side. Black Cloak regains his composure, and strikes a powerful kick at the robot's head. Rouge joins in as well, and strikes the robot square in the chest with a downwards screw kick. For a moment, all is silent. Then Sonic comments, "So, you're a real person after all."

"What are you talking about?"

"I saw you slip up back there. You would've been killed if I weren't here."

"Don't be so dramatic. I would have been fine."

Rouge steps forward. "Sorry to interrupt this _lovely_ conversation, but who in the world are _you_!?"

Sonic answers, "Rouge, this is my 'lead'. He goes by the name Black Cloak."

"Black Cloak? The vigilante?"

"That's right."

Rouge is taken aback. "You're really serious about this. I must say, I expected you to be taller. My name is–"

"Rouge the Bat."

"You know me?"

Sonic steps back to let the two talk, while Black Cloak answers, "Yes. Treasure hunter and government spy, Rouge the Bat. And you shouldn't be here."

"What's the matter? Worried I'll get hurt?"

"Yes."

"Aw, well isn't that sweet." She suddenly takes on a stern face. "Well you look here, Mr. Big-time Superhero. My friend has gone missing without a trace in this city, and I'm not leaving until we find him, so you can either help us find him or get out of my way." She moves right up to his face, and stares into his large, black eyes as she speaks.

He says right back without flinching, "I'm not a hero, and you're in danger here. Having Sonic there is bad enough, but if King gets word that there's a G.U.N. agent in the city, I can promise that you won't live to see the morning. You're not going to find your friend any faster that way."

The two stare each other eye-to-eye for a long moment. Suddenly, Rouge takes a step back. "Are you wearing…contact lenses?"

Black Cloak seems shocked by the question, but he never gets the chance to answer before a far-off person suddenly shouts, "Look! It's Sonic the Hedgehog!" Within seconds, a cacophony of indiscernible voices have joined in, "Sonic the Hedgehog?" "He's here?" "The rumors are true!" "And he's with the Black Cloak!" "They're working together!" The voices grow to a chatter, as people file out from buildings and around street corners, gathering into a crowd around them.

Black Cloak seems almost disgusted by the sudden attention. "I've had enough of this." He reaches back to his belt behind his cloak to grab some device. Before he can pull it out, Sonic suddenly, wordlessly tackles him, pushing him out of the way of the gunshot just in time. The smoke bomb Black Cloak was holding drops onto the floor and detonates, throwing a thick fog into the air as the two tumble down into gaping chasm that separates the roads, and plummet into the darkness. The crowd panics and screams, many having coughing fits in the smoke, and most of them scatter away. In shock, Rouge turns to the wrecked robot, which somehow still functions, barely supporting its nearly-severed upper torso on one arm, and still pointing its gun forward with the other, its red eyes gleaming through the mist. She completely smashes its head with her foot, deactivating it once and for all. Then she runs up to the ledge of the fissure, and looks down into the abyss, where the other two have already long since disappeared.

—–—

 **King Industries HQ**

 **Several hours later**

Wolfric King's high-pitched growl again speaks from the darkness, "Your report?"

Sitting across from him this time is a stern-faced woman with short-cropped hair. She seems very nervous, and slightly confused by the request. "Sir…the android engaged the vigilante as planned, and nearly succeeded in defeating him…however, he was joined by two others, and the android was not capable of combating all three of them at once. We have confirmed one of the two to be Sonic the Hedgehog, and we believe that the other one to be an agent of the Guardian Units of Nations. Both had destroyed several police bots and made their way into the city over the course of the previous twenty-four hours."

"Anything…else?"

"Yes, sir. A large crowd of citizens witnessed the destruction of the android, and appeared to be supporting the vigilante and the hedgehog."

"And here, we have encountered our problem. You see, that android was perfect. Or at least, it was supposed to be. My designs certainly were. As were the Doctor's contributions. Which means that the problem must lie with you. I have trusted you for a very long time with overseeing the construction of my robots, and I'm sure you've learned that I am a _very_ forgiving person. A manufacturing error like the one that you have surely made would be perfectly excusable." Suddenly, his voice takes on an entirely different tone. "But _you_ let an entire crowd of people witness your _failure_ , which they thought was mine! _You_ gave them reason to support those _scum_ called heroes! You!" Just as suddenly, he calms down again. "As I'm sure you can understand, I no longer have need of your services. Your employment for King Industries has been terminated." He leans forward, placing his robotic arm into the light and onto the table.

"Of course, sir." She bows her head, and starts to get up.

"Hold on, I'm not done with you yet." She sits back down. "You see…you understand a lot about the inner workings of King Industries." As he speaks, the mechanical parts in his hand begin to shift and change. "And I'm afraid that I can't have you blabbing any of our secrets to the outside world." His hand completes its transformation, into what is clearly some sort of laser weapon, pointed directly at her. "So allow me to reiterate what I said earlier. Your employment…as well as the rest of your existence…has been terminated." The laser fires. Outside, from the roof of the building, a group of evening birds take flight, off into the night.

 **To be Continued…**


	15. S0 E11: Black Cloak and Sonic

**Westopolis Underground**

Slowly, Sonic returns to consciousness. Though he opens his eyes, he still sees only blackness. "Wha…what happened?"

The voice of Black Cloak speaks from nearby, "You shoved us into the chasm, remember? You're lucky I was able to break your fall, or you could've been injured a lot worse."

"You don't sound very grateful…considering I just saved your life." He gets to his feet.

"I've been waiting on that encounter for a while now. It was supposed to be my way straight to King. Forgive me if I'm bothered at my own failure."

Still a bit dazed, Sonic looks straight up. A small amount of dim moonlight filters down from high above. Some slight amount of visibility returns as Sonic's eyes adjust to the darkness. Suddenly, he becomes aware of the mildly searing pain in his arm. He moves his hand up to cover the spot, and it comes away sticky with blood.

"The bullet grazed your arm. The one meant for me. You should get that wrapped up."

Something dawns on Sonic. "You…you stayed here. Why didn't you just leave?"

"Some hero I'd be if I left an injured man trapped at the bottom of a hole."

"But I thought you weren't a hero. You said that yourself."

"Yeah, I– uh, I mean– you– ugh, nevermind! Forget I said anything…"

"What's the matter? Did I hit a nerve? I was beginning to wonder if you even had any of those."

"Come on. We need to get out of here."

Sonic agrees to drop the last subject. "And how do you propose we do that?"

"You can use Chaos Control. Just warp us back up. You do have a Chaos Emerald, don't you?"

Sonic pulls out his blue Chaos Emerald. Its soft light helps to illuminate the pit. "I…I could. But I shouldn't."

"Shouldn't?"

"Chaos Control…I've only successfully used it a few times in my life. And every one of those times, it was absolutely necessary. Do you have any idea…how dangerous it is?"

"Dangerous? I think you're talking about the wrong Chaos power. I'd say you have it lucky."

"I had never really thought about it before…before recently. Warping instantly to any location you can think of…one lapse in concentration, and you end up inside of a wall or something. I'm not going to take that risk, not unless I have to. And certainly not if I'm putting someone else at risk."

Black Cloak thinks on that for a moment. "I…guess I never thought about it that way. Well, luckily for you, I do know another way out of here. But it will have dangers of its own."

Sonic shrugs, but winces from the pain in his arm. Through gritted teeth, he still lets out a sarcastic, "Lead the way." The two walk off, the Chaos Emerald lighting their way.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 11**

 **Black Cloak, Part 3: Black Cloak and Sonic**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

"So…what was that thing up there?"

Black Cloak answers with contempt, "That was an _android_. A robot meant to look or behave like an intelligent being. I've never seen a King robot built like that one before. It was built specifically to fight me, I'm sure of it."

"Had many problems with androids in the past?"

"You could say that."

Sonic stops as he steps on something metallic. He bends down to pick it up. It's Black Cloak's red projectile, lost in the chasm during the fight. Immediately, Black Cloak snatches it from his hand. But not before he gets a good look at it. The center of the flat, sharp object is composed of a single swirl, clockwise outwards. Six curved spikes of varying length protrude from the outside of the swirl, all curving in the same direction, vaguely resembling the spikes of a hedgehog.

"Give me that!"

"You sure are protective of those things, considering that you throw them at your enemies."

"They aren't easy to make. I reuse them when I can."

"Do you make all of your tools?"

"Most of them. It's a talent I didn't know I had."

"So…what does that symbol mean?"

Black Cloak stares at his throwing tool. "It…it's inspired by the markings that the Black Arms used. With some of my own flair. It's meant to be a message. That I'm serious about what I'm doing. That those who cross me should tremble in fear."

"Black Arms…. The only place I've ever seen a symbol like that before…is on the Black Comet itself. Were you… _on_ the Black Comet?"

"So what if I was?"

"Nothing…it's just…it wasn't a very hospitable place. No one would have gone there…without a good reason."

"So maybe I had one. It's not your business."

"The Black Aliens…it just keeps coming back to the Black Aliens. What did they do to you? Did…did they take someone important away from you?"

"Not exactly."

"Did they destroy your home?"

"Not exactly."

Sonic starts to lose patience. "Were you even _in_ Westopolis during the invasion? Wait, let me guess."

They both say at once, "Not exactly."

They walk in silence for a while. Finally, Sonic asks, "So…did you ever find out anything about Shadow?"

After a moment, he responds, "Not exac–"

Sonic throws up a hand. "Don't say it." Again, they walk on in silence. But Sonic can't keep quiet. "I just can't figure you out."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"I first ask you about Shadow, and you act like you've never heard of him. But every time I mention his name, you pause. And now I learn that you weren't only affected by the Black Arms invasion, but you actually _went_ to the Black Comet. Shadow was _the_ hero of the invasion. It's impossible for you _not_ to have heard of him. Which tells me…that you're hiding something. But what? And why?"

Black Cloak doesn't answer for a long time. Finally, he lets out, "…I can't tell you that."

"Why not!?"

"Because I can't, okay!? I never wanted you to come here, you're making everything so much harder! Everything I've been working so hard to build here, you're ruining all of it! I was trying to make a name for myself! I wanted King to fear me! I wanted the entire city to know that King was going to get what he deserved! But then you showed up! Who needs a guy in a mask when they have a _real_ hero to get behind, one with a face!? And now, thanks to your meddling, my work is inextricably tied to you! How could King ever fear me, when I'm working with the face of absolute happiness and goodness!? And all the while, you're putting yourself and Rouge in danger! This was supposed to be _my_ fight! And to top it all off, I have to worry about keeping secrets from you!" He ends his rant, panting.

Sonic remains silent, unsure of what to say. The awkward silence remains for quite a while. Finally, Sonic prompts, "…If you knew where Shadow was…would you even tell me?"

"…No."

"Do I have any hope of finding Shadow on my own?"

"…No."

Again, all is silent. "…Well I guess I should just leave, then. There's nothing for me here."

"Don't."

"What?"

"Don't leave." He sighs. "I was…wrong. About why I didn't want you. You don't have to say it, I know what you were thinking. And you're right. I don't need fear. I don't need him to feel inferior. That was all for my own satisfaction. What I need is support. From the people. King's operations can't run without the thousands of citizens he's coercing to work for him. I always thought…if they feared me more than they feared him, that would be my only chance. But I can't fight fear with more fear, that just makes everything worse. That's how I got into that mess with the android. What I need is their support. Their respect. That's the only way I can tear down King from the inside. That's why you can't leave. You saw the people up there. Just the sight of you was enough to inspire them. They deserve a real hero, one with a face, not a masked vigilante like me. That's what it comes down to. What I'm doing here is vital. I _am_ the hero that this city needs. But _you_ are the hero that this city deserves. Together, we can take down King. But I can't do it if you leave."

Sonic thinks on this for a while. "…You've just told me…that you've been lying to me this whole time…about something that's more important to me than anything…and now you're asking for my help to take down this, this criminal mastermind, who I'd never heard of until two days ago?"

"I'm not asking you to put yourself at risk. Just be here. Let the people know that things are getting done. It's safer for you and Rouge that way. And when it's all over, I'll tell you everything."

Again, Sonic stops to think. "I guess the whole game's changed, then. You should know…this'll all be reported. You could very well be arrested for knowingly impeding official G.U.N. investigation."

"I knew there would be consequence from the beginning. Vigilante justice isn't exactly legal. What's one more crime added to the list?"

"And there's the other thing. Let's say that you do get to King. Let's say you do it tomorrow. What're you gonna do with him?"

Black Cloak sighs at the inevitable question. "I suppose the answer to that question means everything, doesn't it? I'm going to be honest with you. I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"That's right. I don't know. I'm going to do whatever it takes. If I have to kill him, I won't hesitate. If there's another option…I'll see what I can do."

"That's where you're wrong. There's always a better option than killing, and you know it. You can subdue him, take him in to the police."

"The police? Ha! He controls the police."

"Then turn him over to G.U.N., they can lock him up…at whatever they have now instead of Prison Island. I can help make sure of it, they're eager to help me."

"I certainly don't need your help with that, and I don't need your moral compass either. This isn't something I'm going to debate. I'll do what I can, and that's the best I can offer."

"Well I guess the deal's off then. I'm not going to stick around and help you kill someone, I don't care how evil you think he is. I'm not going to help you become the thing you're trying to defeat."

"Tsk. You think that ending a source of pure evil makes me some kind of monster? I'd be humane about it. He certainly wouldn't do the same for me."

" _You_ think that ending someone's life makes you a good person, just because you're quick about it? I guess the world is full of saints, then."

"I'm not a saint. I'm not a hero. I'm not even a good person. I'm just trying to correct my own mistakes. To put my past behind me, and make a future for myself, one that matters."

"Are you saying…that you have something to do with all of this?"

Black Cloak sighs. "You asked before…if I was in Westopolis during the invasion. And I was. I watched as they rained down from the sky. But then I left. I thought that my silly problems were more important than the thousands of lives lost on that day. If I had stayed…and fought…I could have saved countless lives, driven back the creatures before they could destroy Downtown, while…while someone else dealt with the problem at the source."

"You really think you could have done all that on your own?"

"That and more. I have no doubt of it."

They go on in silence once more. "…I still can't help you, I don't care what you're doing."

"I guess you'll never find Shadow, then."

"Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"Not at all. But I won't tell you what happened to Shadow until King is defeated. It's your choice."

This time, Sonic sighs. "Well I guess it's not much of a choice then. I'll stay. But let's get one thing clear. I'm not stepping out of the way. We're in this together, all the way or not at all, and I'm going to make sure that no one gets killed."

"…If it were anyone else…I would never consider letting you get in my way. But…if I trust anyone to keep up, to work with me, it's Sonic the Hedgehog. But I'll make something clear as well. If you stop me from doing anything that needs to be done…I won't hesitate to turn on you."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take."

Black Cloak seems to look at Sonic oddly for a moment. "You really do care, don't you?" Sonic nods resolutely. With that settled at last, the two continue on into the darkness. High above them, the first light of dawn begins to show.

—–—

 **King Industries HQ**

"He's _what!?_ " Eggman slams his hands down onto the table.

King speaks back from the shadows, "Please, be calm, my good Doctor. You heard me correctly. Sonic the Hedgehog is here, in Westopolis. He has been for nearly thirty-six hours."

"Thirty-six hours!? Why didn't you tell me this sooner!? He must have followed me, he must know what I'm up to! We must act quickly, or–"

"Nonsense. He knows nothing of the sort. Quite an ignorant fellow, that one. I don't believe he even knew _I_ was here, at least until he started snooping around. He is here on other business, searching for a lost friend by the name Shadow. So long as he was ignorant, his presence was ignored. But now, he has meddled in _my_ affairs. He has teamed up with the vigilante."

"You shouldn't underestimate him. He is crafty and agile."

"Oh, don't worry yourself. We now know exactly where he is. And he is being taken care of as we speak. Should my security system fail, there is still a backup plan. This squabble ends today."

"Hold on! You don't mean to _kill_ him!? You can't! I must have Sonic alive!"

"No one said that I would deliver him to you. But, as an act of goodwill, I believe I shall. After all, I understand the need to take an enemy alive. I wouldn't _dream_ of killing the vigilante so soon."

"My, how very generous of you. Our combined forces defeat both of our nemeses, and we both get everything we ever wanted. It truly is a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. King."

"As it is with you, Doctor."

—–—

Black Cloak and Sonic walk on through the chasm, which has now become a cavern. No opening can be seen above them, just a rocky ceiling. "Are we almost there?"

"It shouldn't be far now." Suddenly, they both stop as a large metal clank can be heard.

"Uh…what was that?"

"Remember what I said about danger? Well here it comes." Another clank can be heard, louder this time. "King has been known to use these chasms as dumping grounds for dysfunctional and damaged robots."

"Dumping grounds?" Another clank.

"That's right. For someone like him, it's faster to build a new robot than fix an old one, and he certainly has the money to afford it. And dysfunctional doesn't always mean inactive. Some were simply programmed too violently to be used on the streets without attracting attention."

"So you're saying…"

"This thing will be deadly." With the loudest clank yet, something emerges from the shadows. The thing can only be described as a mechanical monstrosity. Massive in size, it is covered from top-to-bottom in mismatched plates of every metal material imaginable, most of which are missing screws in multiple places, and many of which are barely hanging on at all. The robot has four arms, and is heavily built in the shoulders, hunching over. It has a long, almost dragonoid neck and head. Atop the head, made of various scraps of metal, is a single crown. The King Chimera gives a terrifying mechanical roar.

Black Cloak wastes no time, throwing three of his weapons at the Chimera. They harmlessly bounce off of its hard metal plating. Sonic lets out an "Uh oh." The Chimera roars again, and unleashes from its mouth a stream of bubbling green fluid.

Black Cloak shouts, "Get down!" The two dive out of the way, and the acid sizzles as it strikes the floor where they had been standing.

The robot brings a fist down to try and pound Sonic. Sonic leaps out of the way, and lands on the arm. It tries to swat him off with its second left arm, all while dealing with Black Cloak using its two right arms. Sonic leaps from the arm to the shoulder, and from there aims a spinning strike at a loosely-hanging plate on the Chimera's head. With a loud bang, the plate is ripped free from the robot, revealing some exposed circuitry underneath. Back on the ground, Sonic shouts to Black Cloak, "Aim for the loose plates, we might be able to reveal a weakness!"

"Right!" Black Cloak rolls out of the way of another swat, and before he's even stopped moving, throws three more projectiles, each one precisely aimed for a crevice between plates. For a moment, he remains absolutely still. Then, the projectiles explode, dislodging several more armor plates. While robot is still stunned, he once again pulls out his grappling gun, and fires it at the ceiling. It rapidly propels him upwards and towards the machine, until he lets go, flung into a powerful kick at the base of the neck. Another plate comes off, revealing an area inside where all of the robot's wires and circuit boards appear to lead into. "That must be it!"

This time Sonic goes head-on for an attack. He rolls under another spat spray of acid, but stumbles and grabs at the wound in his arm through a new wave of pain. He quickly picks his speed back up, and sidesteps out of the way of four separate punches. Finally, he leaps into the air, keeping all of his momentum, and delivers a powerful strike to the exposed core.

The Chimera stumbles back, its core damaged and sparking. Black Cloak states simply, "I'll finish this." he throws one last explosive weapon, which sticks into the core and detonates. The robot tumbles to the ground, leaking drops of acid from the cracks in its neck. Wordlessly, Black Cloak starts to walk around it, and indicates for Sonic follow. Behind where the robot was are piles and piles of scrap and junk.

"What was that thing? Why would something like that get thrown down here?"

"I'm sure it wasn't like that originally. All it takes is one semi-functional robot with self-repair functionality, left down here damaged and with plenty of resources for a few weeks to get something like that."

Sonic seems satisfied with that answer, and next displays one of Black Cloaks throwing weapons, which he apparently picked up earlier. "So, you make these explode now? I thought they were hard to make."

"They are. Those are for emergencies only."

"Have you thought about how easily you could get someone killed with one of these?"

"The thought crossed my mind. But really it's not any different than the normal ones. If I wanted to kill someone with one of those, I still wouldn't need more than one. I wouldn't miss. Now, unless you have any other pointless questions, we're here."

"Here?" Sonic puts a hand up and places it onto the rock wall they've just come up to. They appear to be surrounded by stone all sides, except back where they came from. "It's a dead end."

"Step back." Sonic obeys. Black Cloak puts both of his hands onto the stone, and heaves with all of his might. Slowly, the wall, actually just a single large rock, begins to budge. With one final push, the rock slides completely out of the way.

Sonic comments, "Wow, you're stronger than you look." Black Cloak ignores him, and walks into the opening he's created. Sonic follows.

As the two enter the newly-opened cavern, the still-glowing red eyes of the fallen and otherwise deactivated King Chimera can be seen glaring at them, recording and transmitting their movements.

In the cavern they've entered is a wide, flat stone platform, ending in a steep cliff. A trickling waterfall down the wall flows into a creek, across the platform, out and over the cliff. Lying against the wall is a simple metal table with an old radio on top, emitting a continuous static that mixes with the sound of the stream. As Sonic examines all of this, Black Cloak pushes the rock back into place behind them. Finally, Sonic notices, lying on the floor in the center of the cavern, a sparkling white gem. "That's a Chaos Emerald!"

"Yeah, it is. And it's safer in here than it would have been if I had taken it out there."

Sonic thinks on that for a moment. "So in other words…you have no use for it."

Black Cloak immediately tightens a fist as if enraged by the comment. But he calms down in a moment. He growls out, "No, I don't."

"You know, I could–"

"No."

Sonic takes the hint, and resumes looking around the room. "So this is like your secret base then? Your Cloak Cavern?"

"If that's what you want to call it." He takes a few steps so that he stands behind Sonic.

"It looks very nice. Who would've guessed that something like fissures through a city would open up such a stunning view like this? So…how do we get out from here?"

"Well you see…" He lifts an arm into the air behind Sonic's head. "…I'm afraid that I can't let you see that part." Sonic hardly has a chance to realize what's happening before Black Cloak's chop strikes him on the head. Black Cloak catches Sonic's unconscious body in his arms. "Now, let's take a look at that wound in your arm."

—–—

 **Downtown**

Rouge opens the door, a look of exhaustion and despair on her face. She holds something in her other hand. On the other side of the door, Black Cloak lays Sonic down onto the bed of the hotel room. Rouge gasps at the sight. Black Cloak turns with a start to face her. For just a moment, his vision seems to fixate on the object in her hand, what appears to be a simple gold ring. Then he turns and leaps out the open window. Rouge still stands stunned for a moment. Then she runs up to Sonic. He has a bandage carefully wrapped around his arm, as well as a small patch on the top of his head. She begins to shake him. "Sonic! Sonic, are you alright!? Say something!"

Slowly, Sonic begins to stir. He lets out a soft grunt, followed by a weak, "My head hurts."

Rouge breathes out an immense sigh of relief, and collapses back onto the other bed.

Sonic opens his eyes and props himself up a bit. Still weak and groggy, he lets out, "What's the matter? Didya miss me?"

"I thought you were dead! I've been asking around for hours, and all anyone tells me is that no one's ever gotten out of one of those chasms alive! How did you get out? How did you survive the fall?"

Sonic struggles to think back. "That's just the thing…I don't know." He thinks for another moment. "We can't trust him."

"Him? You mean the Black Cloak? Did he _not_ just save your life?"

"He did…at least I think he did. He also knocked me out. But that's not what matters. We can't trust him."

"Sonic…what happened down there?"

"We had a nice long talk. Rouge, he knows what happened to Shadow." She gasps again. "And he agreed to tell me everything, if I stayed here and helped him beat…kill King. And that's the problem. He's going to kill him, Rouge, and he wants me to help him do it. He said he would try to avoid it, he said he would let me be there to make sure, but he was lying. He's been lying all along."

Rouge thinks on this. "What if…what if King deserves it?"

"How could you say that!? How could you wish the end of existence on someone else!? It's despicable! It's unthinkable!" His words ring in the air for a while until all falls silent. "…Sorry…"

"No. No, you're right, that was a terrible thing for me to say." She thinks for another moment. "So you're saying…that he's not going to tell us about Shadow, either."

"That's right. He's going to get to King, he's going to finish him, and then he's going to disappear. Unless we do something about it." Rouge is staring deeply at the ring she holds, which Sonic only just seems to notice. "Is…is that…?"

Rouge nods. "It's Shadow's. The one you gave me."

"You've kept that old thing all this time? I thought you would've thrown it away, or just given it to Shadow after he came back."

"At first…when I was trying to help him get his memories back…it was for him. I kept showing it to him, it was the only proof I had that I really did know him, that he really did have a past. But he just kept pushing me away. So it became a reminder of something else. That, even without me…Shadow would never be completely alone. Because he had another friend looking out for him. You." She smiles at him.

Sonic nods, understanding why she had the Inhibitor Ring out in the first place. "So, you really did miss me."

Rouge scoffs, but doesn't object.

"Come on." Sonic starts to get up.

"Whoa, hold on there." She pushes him back down. "You're still hurt. You need rest. In fact, I think we could both use some sleep after a night like that."

"We can sleep once we've found Shadow." He pushes past her and stands up anyways. "Until then, every minute we're not searching is a waste. We're on a time limit now. Once Black Cloak gets to King…we may not get another chance. He may be the only link we have left to Shadow. And I have a theory on where we can start." Sonic promptly leaves the room. Rouge sighs, shrugs, and follows.

—–—

 **Shadow's House**

Sonic and Rouge step over the untouched door they broke down the previous day. "Just as I thought." Sonic indicates the floor. "Take a look."

Rouge examines the floor carefully. "All I see are our footprints in the dust."

"Look closer. Those aren't just ours." Sonic speaks the truth. One trail of prints can be traced around the room where Sonic had been searching, then into the kitchen, where a trail of Rouge's bootprints can also be seen entering. Both trails come back out of the kitchen and straight to the door. But there is a third trail, starting from the center of the room and going straight out the door, almost unnoticeable in that they blend in with Sonic's trail. The mysterious third trail, upon closer inspection, has deeper, more clear impressions in the dust, with a few prints that slide slightly, as if their creator was staggering under a heavy load. "As if he was carrying an unconscious person on his shoulder," Sonic finishes the thought. "These prints belong to the Black Cloak."

"Can you be sure? What if someone else–"

"I'm sure." He walks to the center of the room, and crouches down for a closer look. He pinpoints the very first print, then follows it backwards. It doesn't have any traceable entrance point. "Now where could he have come from…?" Just as last time, he begins to trace the seams of the wood paneling with his fingers. But he stops as he comes across four small depressions in the dust over a particularly wide gap between panels. Hesitantly, he places his own four fingers into the gap at that point, then suddenly grips the panel and heaves up. A large section of floor paneling flips back. Underneath the floor, in the center of the cement foundations of the building, is a great puddle of oozing red and black fluid. "No…it couldn't be…"

The enraged voice of the Black Cloak growls from behind them, "You weren't supposed to see that."

 **To be continued…**


	16. S0 E12: Black Cloak Forever Part 1

**Shadow's House**

"I thought we agreed that you would stop snooping around," Black Cloak growls, clenching his fists in anger.

Sonic scoffs. "And I thought we agreed to trust each other. But my throbbing head says otherwise."

"I told you I would turn on you if you got in my way. You brought this on yourself!" Black Cloak roars as he charges at Sonic. Sonic barely has time to put up his arms before being knocked over. The two tumble back, and roll right into the puddle of crimson sludge that was revealed under the floor tiles. The moment the Black Cloak comes into contact with the slime, the two appear to be sucked into it, with a flash of colorful light.

Rouge is left gaping, alone in the room. Not sure what else to do, she walks up to the ooze, and hesitantly places a hand into it. She doesn't look surprised when nothing happens. "There's nothing I can do now…except report my findings."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 12**

 **Black Cloak, Part 4: Black Cloak Forever Part 1  
**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

Sonic and Black Cloak roll rapidly down a tunnel of pulsating, glowing red, orange, and purple, desperately trying to pull off any blow that they can in the confusion. Within a few moments, they tumble out the other side, another large puddle of the alien sludge, out into a creek and down a small waterfall, creating a great splash at the bottom. Each of them separately stands back up from the fall. Sonic, in confusion, points from the top of the waterfall, to Black Cloak, back to the waterfall. "Did you…just–"

Black Cloak doesn't give him a chance to answer, charging at him once more. More prepared this time, Sonic is able to take a step back and dodge, then throws a blow of his own. Each fighter appears tired and sloppy, constantly dropping their guard yet failing to land a hit. But slowly, Sonic is pushed back step-by-step, until he suddenly finds himself stumbling over the edge of a cliff, flailing his arms for balance. "Whoa!" He begins to tip back, down towards the abyss below.

A red-gloved hand grabs hold of Sonic's arm, stopping his fall. Black Cloak pulls Sonic back onto solid ground. After recovering himself, Sonic awkwardly avoids eye contact. "Uh…thanks. I think we just–" Black Cloak lands a solid punch across Sonic's face, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Ow…"

Sonic tries to get back up, but Black Cloak puts a foot on his shoulder to stop him. "There is no misunderstanding. I don't want you dead. But I can't let you get in my way. This is something that I have to do."

Sonic grunts from the floor, "What're you gonna to do with me, huh?" Not far away, a low rumbling can be heard. But neither one seems to notice it.

"I can just leave you in here. There are only two ways out, and now you've seen both of them. You can't leave this cavern without me."

"Is that really how it's gonna be? Think about what you're doing. Think about the kind of person you want to be. Is this who you really are?"

"I know exactly what I'm doing. _This_ is who I am."

From across the room, a mechanical voice shouts, "Put your hands in the air! This is the King Police Force!"

Black Cloak turns around with a start. "What the–"

A large group of King Androids in police uniforms stand before the rock-entrance to the Cloak Cavern, the rock having been moved away. Their gun-arms are all pointed at the Black Cloak. "You are charged with aggravated assault, destruction of property, and resisting arrest. Surrender immediately."

Black Cloak stands completely motionless, unsure of what to do. Facing just one android nearly killed him the last time. Suddenly, Sonic shouts, "We surrender!" Having stood back up, Sonic slowly walks towards the androids, hands raised in the air. As he passes Black Cloak, he whispers, "You want to see King? Here's how you do it." He takes a few more steps, then gets down onto his knees, still holding up his hands. He motions with his head for Black Cloak to do the same.

Black Cloak still stands, completely frozen. Finally, he begins to mutter out, "The junk robot…we didn't deactivate it…it still had a link to King…it saw us come in here…how could I have slipped up like this…?"

"Slipped up, you have, my irritating adversary." From the shadows of the cavern, behind the lineup of androids, a pair of yellow eyes stare out.

Sonic says with disdain, "King."

"Shut up, you. You are nothing to me."

Sonic sighs in irritation, but obeys.

"And as for you…" Black Cloak remains almost impossibly still. "…you will drop to your knees. Now."

"I…I'm not afraid of you."

"Oh really? Well, you had me fooled. But just to make sure, let's get one thing clear. Get on the ground, or my androids will open fire."

"Your weapons don't scare me. I won't let you control me."

"Oh, they won't fire at you. They'll fire at your little blue friend over there." Suddenly, all the weapons in the room turn to face Sonic. A strangely distant, quiet voice can almost be heard shouting from King's location, "What!?"

Sonic tries to interject, "Don't let–"

"I said shut up!" Sonic bows his head again. "So, tell me, _hero_. What's it going to be? Your pride? Or the innocent life?"

Black Cloak looks from Sonic, to the androids, to the eyes of King. Finally, slowly, he raises his arms, and drops to his knees. "My life is yours. I surrender."

"Oh, marvelous! I must give you credit, you are an intelligent man. And I am quite impressed at how you've managed to pique my curiosity so. But I must know. I must learn. Androids…bring him here. Let us see who this vigilante really is." Two androids step out of line to grab Black Cloak by the arms, dragging him to the edge of the shadows. He doesn't resist.

King's mechanical arm reaches out from his place in the shadows, and firmly grasps the rim of Black Cloak's hood. Sonic shows surprise at the robotic limb, but a look into King's eyes reassures him. The two androids who broke formation still hold Black Cloak by the arms, but the rest have all stepped out of the way, leaving little resistance between Sonic and King. But then Sonic shakes his head. His eyes are drawn back to the Black Cloak. Little by little, his hood is being pulled back. First to be revealed are the red fringes streaking the top of his eyes. Sonic's eyes fill with curiosity at the sight. "No…"

The hood continues to roll back. Between his ears, another red streak is revealed through his black fur. The streak reaches all the way back to the tip of a hedgehog's spike. Four more streaked spikes are revealed, jutting slightly upwards.

King drops the hood, letting it fall all the way back. He barks, "It can't be!" Suddenly in a rage, he grabs the facemask, and rips it from Shadow the Hedgehog's muzzle.

Sonic shouts in confusion, "Shadow!?"

Shadow's eyes stay locked to the floor. The same unaccounted for voice from before distantly speaks, "Shadow…"

King continues in his high-pitched growl, "Shadow the Hedgehog. Oh, how ironic fate can be! Delivered right into my hands after all this time, and I didn't even know it! No wonder I found you so irritating. You know, I have half a mind–"

Sonic suddenly leaps into the air, first striking the two androids that still hold Shadow. Broken from his sulking, Shadow shouts, "Sonic, no!"

All in an instant, King declares, "Kill them both!"

All of the androids begin to open fire, as the extra voice shouts, "What!? No! Don't kill them!" Yelling so loudly, it is clearly identifiable as Eggman's.

Without pausing for a moment, Sonic continues his surprise attack, hitting King himself just as Eggman finishes yelling.

A mechanical wreck flies out from the shadows, with one mechanical arm clearly designed more intricately than the rest of the relatively simple robot, and a screen for a head. On the screen, the yellow eyes of King flicker out as the robot deactivates. "What!? King was a robot!?"

Left with no other choice, Shadow has sprung into action as well, furiously throwing his Black Cloak weapons as fast as he can grab them, all while dodging the countless blasts fired across the room. "Of course he was!" He doesn't specify any further.

Sonic jumps over a shot from an android, and aims a spin attack at its head, knocking it over. He pounds a chain of bounce attacks right over it, ensuring its destruction, and lands on the ground just in time to duck under another blast. "And you were the Black Cloak the entire time!?"

"Of course I was!"

"And you never told me this!?"

"Of course I didn't!"

"And you–" Sonic is silenced as an android fist strikes the back of his head. He collapses to the floor, and everything goes black.

—–—

 **?**

For the third time that day, Sonic's consciousness slowly begins to return to him. The room is dim and metallic. Sonic hangs suspended from chains bound to his wrists and ankles. Still groggy, he looks to his left. Shadow is hung in the same manner, still wearing his cloak and suit, with the hood down. With a grunt of acknowledgement at Sonic's awakening, he states, "If you keep getting hit in the head like that, you'll get some _real_ brain damage."

Sonic grunts out, "You sure are concerned with my safety all of a sudden. And Rouge's. I guess that makes a little more sense, now." He thinks for a moment. "And the way I remember it, you were responsible for one of these."

Shadow is silent for a moment. "…It was necessary."

"Oh, it was 'necessary', was it? And I suppose keeping such a big secret from us was just as _necessary_?"

"I have no obligation to tell you anything."

"All we cared about coming in here was finding you! Why didn't you just tell us? You put us in more danger by giving us a reason to stay here!"

"And what would you have done if I _had_ told you? Taken me back in to G.U.N.? I want nothing to do with them. And I couldn't just leave what I was doing here."

"Then we could have helped you, done everything we could, right from the beginning."

"I didn't want your help! This is _my_ problem! These were _my_ mistakes! I left the door wide open for King, and I have to fix that!"

"I could have done something! I could have convinced you! You don't have to be alone! You have friends! I care about you! Rouge cares about you!"

"Great, another one of your pathetic friendship speeches. Is that how you intended to convince me?"

"As I recall, it was a friendship speech that first made you a hero. Made by one more person who cares about you!"

"That was in a past I can hardly remember! I'm trying to put my past behind me, and I can't do that when you keep getting in the way!"

"You can't just ignore your past, Shadow! It's a part of who you are! You can't let it control you, you can't let it define you, but you can't just pretend like it never happened at all! You have to learn from it! You have to remember it, to let it give your life meaning!" Shadow doesn't answer. For a minute, they both remain silent. "…I just don't understand…"

"Understand what?"

"The suit. The weapons. The persona. Why? What's the point of it all? What's the point of the secret?"

"I've already explained all of it to you. Honestly, I can't believe that you didn't figure it out on your own. I told you my approach for fighting King. I needed stealth, subtlety, and above all, fear. If I had gone in as myself, King would've been long gone by the time I found him. If I had told you, word would've spread through the entire city within a day. King would have an advantage against me, unless he had no way of knowing it was me. So I became the Black Cloak. I first needed King to doubt my very existence. Then I needed him to become fascinated by me, enough to make me a target. Then I needed him to fear me, get him to slip up and give me the one chance I needed. And it was all going according to plan, until you came in and started messing things up."

"Messing things up?"

"That's right. If it weren't for your reckless actions back there, I would've been able to choose the right time to strike."

"Well how was I supposed to know King was a robot?"

" _He_ isn't a robot. He doesn't do any dealings in person, let alone walking into the lair of his nemesis. He sent a robot proxy, meant to fool people like _you_. The arm was accurate, though. That's how he keeps the illusion so easily. It's said that he lost his real arm in the Black Arms attack, and built himself a new one. His first large-scale engineering project. The beginning of his rise to power."

"So wherever King really was…Eggman was there too."

"Does that surprise you?"

"It does, actually. Organized crime doesn't really seem like his kind of thing."

"Well, you can deal with him later. We have to get out of here."

"'We'? Does that mean you do want my help now?"

"I don't have much of a choice, do I?"

"You got that right."

"Alright. So what's your plan?"

"Plan?"

"Surrendering was your idea, remember? You're not saying you didn't have a plan to get out?"

Sonic does the closest thing he can to a shrug in the awkward position he's hanging in. "I thought I would figure it out when I got here."

"Well, here we are." Shadow continues with sarcasm, "What do you propose we do now?"

"Hmm… Well, I suppose we should deal with these chains first. Can you break them?"

Shadow gets a good grip on the chains, and begins to pull with all his might. After a moment, he goes slack again. "Won't work."

Sonic resumes his thinking. "What about your shoes?"

"My shoes?"

"Yeah. They shoot fire, don't they? That's how you run so fast. What if you used the jets in your shoes to melt the chains?"

"That sounds ridiculous. But it's worth a try." Awkwardly, Shadow manages to clasp the chains between the bottoms of his feet. In a moment, the black cloth he wears begins to burn away, revealing his familiar red-trimmed white and black hover shoes underneath. The chains begin to glow mildly as they are heated. "This may take a while. What about you?"

"I think I have an idea." Sonic kicks one foot forward and the other back until the chains go taught. Then he switches feet, kicking the other way. He kicks back and forth, faster and faster, until he begins to gain the appearance of running through the air. With each step, the chains clang loudly. In a moment, the first chain snaps, then the other.

—–—

Shadow lands on the ground, the last of his chains broken. Sonic questions, "What now?"

Shadow walks up to the wall of the room, and puts a hand on it. "This can't just be a box we're stuck in. It has to have an entrance, even if we can't see it." He puts an ear up to the wall and knocks lightly on it. A hard metallic sound reverberates back. He takes a few steps to his right, and knocks again. He continues this way halfway around the room, until his knocking results in a deep, hollow echo. "This is it. There's empty space on the other side." He readies a fist. "Stand back." He throws a full-power punch at the covered exit. The metal heavily dents, but does not give way. Shadow pulls his hand back, shaking it off in clear pain. "It's too strong."

Sonic chuckles. "Why did you even try? Let's just warp around it."

Shadow freezes up. "You mean…with…"

"Chaos Control, yeah. Is there a problem?"

"I…I can't."

"You can't? Well why not?"

"Because…because I…" He shakes his head. "I don't have the Chaos Emerald. King probably took it."

"Well why didn't you just say so?" Sonic pulls out his own blue Emerald, and drops it into Shadow's hand. "He didn't take any of mine."

"Uh–" Shadow stares at the Emerald in his hand. It trembles. "Sonic…I can't use Chaos Control."

"Whaddaya mean you can't? You have the Emerald right there!"

"I mean I physically can't! I haven't been able to for months! I've been trying and trying, but it doesn't work!"

"Shadow…I…I didn't realize."

"That's why I quit G.U.N.. That's why I came here, why I put on the mask. I needed to find myself. I needed to find Shadow the Hedgehog. Without Chaos Control…who am I?"

"I said it already. You can't let your past define you. But you _definitely_ can't let one single skill define you."

"Oh really? And who would you be if one day you woke up and you couldn't use your legs? No more running. Who would you be?"

"I'd be Sonic the Hedgehog, a friend…a brother…and the Controller."

"What!?"

"Yeah, that's right. We have a lot to talk about. I need your help. But we have other things to worry about right now."

"You need _my_ help in matters of Chaos? Clearly you're asking the wrong person. I can't even get the simplest technique right."

"We can figure that out later. We need to find another way out of here."

"Well, you're the Controller, aren't you?" He shoves the Emerald back towards Sonic. "I'm sure _you_ can handle it."

"We've talked about this, Shadow. I don't want to put you at risk like that."

"Well we don't have much a choice, do we?" After a moment, Sonic reluctantly takes back the Emerald, and stares at it. Shadow lets out a sigh. "Look. You have the ability, and I have the practice." He puts a hand on Sonic's arm. "I'll focus on where we're going, you worry about getting us there. We'll do it together."

Sonic looks at him oddly. "Hm. Maybe you really are learning. You're more talkative than usual, too."

"Yeah? Well, I'm not the only one who's changing. Now, let's get out of here."

Sonic gives a nod. "Right." Shadow still holding his arm, he holds up the Emerald. "Chaos…Control!" In a flash of bright light, Sonic and Shadow disappear. In just an instant, they appear again in another flash, Sonic slamming his head into the already-dented wall. Shadow manages to land on his feet, but Sonic is sent sprawling back. He gets up quickly, clutching his head in pain. He wobbles a bit, as if ready to lose consciousness yet again. "Argh… What the…?"

Shadow again puts his hand up to the metal. Sonic's head has left a dent almost as large as Shadow's fist did. "Something's not right about this. That should've worked."

"It must've been my fault. I told–"

"No. You did everything right. So why…?" He continues to run his hand up and down the wall in confusion. "Maybe it's the wall itself… Maybe it's…"

"Chaos-proof?" Shadow gives the slightest nod. "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know…"

"I guess we need another way out then."

One last time, Shadow places his hand into each of the dents. "If it's dented already…it's bound to give way eventually." Suddenly, he readies a fist and delivers another resounding punch to the metal, widening the dents and echoing the loudest sound yet. He shakes off his hand a bit, and then immediately delivers another.

"Uh…Shadow…?"

With each blow, Shadow gives a more intense grimace of pain, yet still he keeps going, denting the metal further and further. After a minute, one final, extra powerful blow from Shadow knocks the slab of metal completely in, and it collapses to the floor, revealing a long hallway on the other side. Shadow holds the fingers of his hand in an awkward position.

"Shadow…are you alright?"

He grunts out, "I'll be fine. We have to go, King probably already knows we've escaped." He begins walking out, and Sonic follows, still wearing a concerned look over Shadow's self-inflicted injury. He stops to pick up a broken piece of the metal, then continues on his way.

—–—

 **King Industries HQ**

"You didn't really think I was going to kill them, did you? It was a fear tactic! You saw how he trembled! I need him to fear me! That's the only way my vengeance shall succeed."

Eggman stutters back, "Uh, yes, of course, I–"

"Your outbursts nearly ruined the entire operation! Consider yourself lucky that your adversary is so gullible." King pauses for a moment. "But that is of no consequence now. You see, I called you here for a very special surprise."

Eggman shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "And…what do you mean by that?"

"Look for yourself." With a robotic hand, King indicates a direction off to the side, where another pair of yellow eyes stare out from the shadows.

Eggman hardly seems fazed. "Yes, I've been dealing with a proxy all this time. I was quite aware."

The real King responds, "Yes, I'm sure you were, good Doctor. That wasn't the surprise." A large shoe steps out of the shadows and into the light. "You see, I'm not quite the man I made myself out to be." As King steps towards the light, the first that can be seen of him is his robotic arm. Then, the silvery-grey fur of his shoulder and face. He appears much like an animoid fox, though with more pointed features, and fur flaring out at the base of his neck resembling spikes. On the side of his prosthetic arm, he also has a long scar running down the side of his face. "In fact, I'm not a man at all!" He lets out a barking laugh at his own joke.

"What!? You're one of _them_!?"

"Them? Not at all. I am one and only. There is no one like me. I am on no one's side, let alone that wretched Shadow. Wolfric King does not exist. I am King the Wolf."

"Why would you hide such a thing?"

"Oh, don't act so naive, Doctor. You know as well as I do how this world works. My kind aren't expected to get _jobs_ , to integrate into _society_. Who would have funded my machines, if they believed that my natural talent would allow me to succeed on my own? How would I have gained so much power? Humans are jealous of us. But you, Doctor, aren't like them. You understand me, I can see it in your face."

"So why do you reveal this now?"

"I thought it important that someone knew my secret before the final battle begins."

"Final battle?"

"Oh, yes. The hedgehogs have escaped. I intend to put an end to them. But, in the instance that I should fail, I leave everything to you."

"What!?"

"You heard me correctly. All of my materials. My schematics. My robots. My research. All yours, if I fail today."

"But…but I…"

"You intended to betray me, no? Oh, don't look so surprised, Doctor. I could tell from the very beginning that you had no intention of keeping your promises to me. Hopefully, that will no longer be necessary. Though I warn you, I have been hiding a certain betrayal of my own. I'm afraid you won't be finding any more of your favorite new Chaos-proof material among my supplies. It cannot be manufactured at all. It does not occur naturally on this planet. What little I have was recovered from the wreckage of the Black Comet itself."

Eggman seems stunned, unsure of how to respond to so much information at once. "You…you sound as if you expect to fail today."

"Well, let's just say I'll be attempting something beyond your imagination. All experimental. It's possible that I won't survive the process. But I've run out of time."

"And you're just going to give everything away? To me!?"

"I have no one else that I trust. And I certainly can't let the military get ahold of it. Could you imagine what they could do with all of my technology? Call my donation to you…the lesser of two good deeds." He barks another laugh.

"Hmm…well…who am I to deny such a generous offer?"

"I'm quite glad you see it that way, Doctor. Now, if you don't mind, I have work to attend to." King turns to leave, but then stops. "Oh, by the way. When you look through my documents, I suggest that you take a good look at file number…19910623. It may interest you." With that, he walks off back into the darkness.

—–—

Sonic and Shadow have arrived at what appears to be a stairwell. Without hesitation, Shadow begins to move down the steps. Sonic stops him. "Whoa, where do you think you're going?"

Shadow answers without irony, "Down."

"Odds are, the place we were being held was underground. They wouldn't put us on some middle floor, unless this is an entire tower of prison cells, which I doubt. The exit's going to be up above us." For emphasis, he points up the opposite staircase.

"I'm sure you're right." Shadow resumes his walk downwards.

"This is about King, isn't it?"

Shadow stops again. "If there's something underneath the top-secret prison level…that has to be where he hides. Or at least have some clue of where he does."

"I assume nothing's changed?"

"That's right."

"Then you know I can't let you go down there alone."

"Then let's stop wasting time." He resumes his walk once more, and Sonic follows, eyeing Shadow carefully.

—–—

Shadow is the first to open the door to the wide-open room. Though not very well-lit, the room appears to be some sort of mechanical research lab. Scattered all around are various half-finished machines and schematics, some of them flinging sparks into the air. But the centerpiece of the room appears to be a tall pod with a fogged-over glass cover, topped by an ominously glowing red Chaos Emerald.

"Ah, so glad that you could make it here, Shadow." The familiar yellow eyes stare out at the hedgehogs from the corner of the room. "At last, we can get started."

 **To be Continued…**


	17. S0 E13: Black Cloak Forever Part 2

**King's Lair**

"I've been awaiting this day for far too long." King the Wolf begins to step out of the shadows. Sonic gives a gasp, but Shadow doesn't seem surprised. King waves about his robotic arm as he speaks. "Sonic, I have no qualms with you. You are free to leave. In fact, the Doctor will be waiting for you up on the twenty-fifth floor, likely downloading all of my files by now. You'd better hurry, if you want to catch him." As he passes a computer console, he types few keys into it. A light activates on the pod in the center of the room.

Unexpectedly, Shadow agrees. "You should go. I can handle this."

Sonic shakes his head. "Not a chance. I'm staying right here."

King chuckles a bit. "Ooh, do I detect some animosity between the two of you?" He gives a very casual shrug. "Very well. Suit yourself." He resumes his pacing, hitting a few more keys each time he passes the console. "After all I've been through…all my research…all my suffering…at last, it all becomes worthwhile, so much sooner than I was expecting. I certainly have the Doctor to thank for that. His previous experience was absolutely vital in the completion of my ultimate project."

Shadow doesn't seem amused. "I don't know what you're babbling about. And I don't care. This is your one and only chance to surrender to me."

"Oh, Shadow, you offend me. Though perhaps it was vain of me to assume that you keep track of those you've hurt."

Shadow's firm countenance suddenly falters. "What…what do you mean…?"

King barks out a quick laugh. "He really doesn't know, the wretch!" It becomes clear that King is barely maintaining his calm manners. He holds up his mechanical arm, and waggles its fingers for emphasis. "You didn't really believe that some _alien_ did this to me, did you? No… _this_ is on you!"

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 13**

 **Black Cloak, Part 5: Black Cloak Forever Part 2**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

"No…no, that's impossible! I fought aliens and human soldiers, no one like you!"

"Oh, no, of course you didn't _fight_ me. I'd surely be dead if you had. No, instead, you created explosions of energy from your very body, obliterating everything in your path! Including the building I was still inside of!" He waggles his robot fingers again. "I'm sure I don't need to say how dangerous it is to be in a falling building."

"G.U.N. had evacuated all of the citizens by the time I made it to the core of the city! What were you doing in an unstable building during an alien invasion!?"

"Trying to shirk off the blame, are you!? So it's my fault that I couldn't leave!? It's my fault that you destroyed my life!?"

Shadow is silent for a long moment. "…You're right. You have every right to despise me. But it doesn't have to be this way. You can go to G.U.N., they can help you. The technology they work on, it's incredible. Especially with your help, they can make you an arm more like your old one."

Sonic steps forward. "Or don't go to G.U.N.. I have a friend who can help you, maybe even better."

This time, King falls into a fit of laughter. "You two are so pathetic! Ha ha! Nothing's even changed, and suddenly you want to offer me salvation, _me_ , the enslaver of the city, the ultimate lord of crime! Hilarious! Just because you suddenly realize that I'm a real person, with _feelings_ and _emotions_. And that's not even the funniest part! You really think that this is all over _this_ silly thing?" Again he brandishes the hand. "Ha! In fact, on the contrary, I'm quite fond of this look."

Shadow takes on a concerned look. "What are you…talking about?"

"No, it wasn't the arm. Perhaps, under different circumstances, your _power_ would never have harmed me. But things just didn't go my way, on that fateful day. From the moment the first alien landed, the military began standard evacuation procedures. Women and children first. Then the elderly. Then the men. And our kind last of all. It is a time-honored order, and it's certainly a sensible one. After all, we are far better able to defend ourselves than the average human. But all the same, the Black Arms had long since swarmed the city by the time there was any concern paid to me. And that's why _it_ happened. That's why she was struck by an alien weapon."

"She?"

Somehow, King speaks calmly through it all. "My younger sister, who I had only just come to visit. I know, it must be hard for you to imagine that I once cared for someone."

Shadow closes his eyes and clenches his fist, already predicting the end of the story. "What was her name?"

"To speak her name in your presence would be a disgrace to her memory!" After the outburst, he takes a moment to calm down. "I took her into the nearest building, treated her as best I could. And then I heard a shout from outside. Do you know what I heard?"

Shadow almost seems prepared for the question. "D–…death to all who oppose me…"

"Yes, that's right. So I looked outside. Just imagine my surprise at seeing Shadow the Hedgehog, hero of the ARK himself, here to save us from these monsters. I thought, 'With him here, maybe I'll be able to leave and safely get her the medical attention she needs.' And then I watched you explode. I heard the words, 'Chaos Blast.' And then the building began to collapse. I woke up in the hospital, without an arm. She had died long before. How does that make you feel, _Shadow_? To know that you're a murderer? And to think that you were such a bother to my revenge against you, and neither of us even knew it!"

Shadow is dumbstruck. "Uh-…I-…I didn't-…I was…confused…"

"Oh, you were _confused_ , were you!? Well, I guess that just makes everything _okay_ then! Who could possibly blame a _confused_ person!?"

Sonic shouts, "Don't listen to him, Shadow! He's just trying to get in your head!"

King raises an eyebrow. "Hm. Maybe you aren't as dumb as you look. But that is of no consequence, now. You see, through all of this, I've learned something. I've learned that flesh, and blood, and bone, it's all weak. Fragile. Imperfect. But at last, I have found a way, a way to make myself perfect." He hits one last key on the console, and the front of the pod suddenly pops open. Sonic and Shadow take fighting stances. But it is empty inside. "It all starts with this…" King walks around to the front of the pod. "The beginning of my new life!" He lets out a long, drawn-out laugh as he hops into the pod, and it closes down on him. Sonic springs into action, and thuds harmlessly off of the glass, far too late. As the pod sinks into the ground, the Chaos Emerald on its top is drawn inside. King's muffled laughter can still be heard.

Everything goes silent. Lights flash furiously on the computers in the room as they appear to be processing something. Finally, Sonic asks, "What now?"

Shadow responds calmly, "He's going to come back up. He made that much clear. When he does, you need to be ready. That may be our only chance." Sonic nods.

Suddenly, what lights there are in the room shut off, leaving all in pitch blackness. A dim light comes on from below, as a new pod begins to rise from the floor, this one considerably taller than the last. The cover is completely fogged-over. Wasting no time, Sonic tries another attack just as the cover of the pod pops open. A mechanical hand reaches out from the steam and grabs him by the throat, stopping him instantly. Sonic chokes as he struggles to free himself.

The owner of the arm steps out of the pod. There is a loud clank as the metal feet contact the ground. The fog begins to clear away, revealing nothing but metal. Instead of King, there is a tall android with a more human-like build, and a head with wolf-like features. Its eyes glow a striking yellow. Atop its head, embedded point-up, is the sparkling red Chaos Emerald. The Kingdroid cocks its head and looks at the struggling figure of Sonic in its hand, as if at some pitiable thing. Then it tosses him to the side with little effort. Sonic collides into the wall with a crash, and collapses to the ground.

Once again, Shadow is left speechless. Kingdroid looks to him and gives a terrifying mechanical smile. It speaks in a mechanized filter of his old voice, "Surprised? You have every right to be. How could such a feeble mind as yours have comprehended the thoughts of one such as I?"

"You transferred your mind…into a machine?"

"Oh, this is no ordinary machine. _This_ is the perfect body. No flaws. No weaknesses. Only power. You may be the Ultimate Life Form. But life is weak. _I_ am the Ultimate Being! And now that I have the power you have driven me to create, I am going to _make you suffer_."

"You're holding on…to so much hatred. Look at what it's done to you. You don't have to let your past control you."

"You think that I can just _forget_ everything that's happened to me!? My past is a part of who I am, whether I like it or not!"

"No, it doesn't have to be that way! How do you think that I even live with myself!? The military murdered everyone I ever cared about, and I enlisted because I thought I could become a better person! G.U.N. isn't the same organization that shut down the ARK, and I'm not the same person who made one terrible mistake during the invasion!"

"You poor, naive fool. Do you really think that I didn't _try_ to move on?" The android's head shakes. "No. You can ignore the past. But the past will never ignore you. You may come to learn that…if you live to see the day. Though I should be proof enough of that."

Shadow looks from King to the unconscious figure of Sonic, and back to King. "I tried to do the right thing. I tried to help you. But you can't be helped. Now, I'm going to finish what I set out to do. You're going to pay for what you've done to this city!"

"I'd say that you're making things harder on yourself…but really, it doesn't make much of a difference. Besides…" Kingdroid produces two more Chaos Emeralds, white and cyan. "…I hold all of the power here." He takes the white one, and inserts it into a slot on his head near the red one. "One from you." He does the same with the cyan. "One from the Doctor." The three upward-pointing gems together seem to resemble a crown. "And of course, the one that I've been holding onto for myself. More than enough for all of the power I could ever need. Go ahead, come at me. Make the first move. What are you waiting for?"

Taking the opportunity, Shadow clenches a fist and flings himself at the Kingdroid. He is easily swatted aside in one blow. Unfazed, Shadow quickly gets back up and takes another leap. Another casual swat knocks him aside once more. Shadow is able to rise again, but already shows signs of injury and weariness, though much of it stems from the tribulations of the previous few days.

"What's the matter, Shadow? Where are those Chaos Powers of yours? I was so excited to see them first-hand."

Shadow growls and runs at the android, which catches his hands in its own. The two struggle and push against each other, their faces drawing close. Shadow sees nothing but a cold stare in its robotic eyes. Shadow redoubles his effort, but it makes little difference. The Kingdroid pushes harder and harder against him, and he begins to lose ground. Suddenly, Shadow is forcibly shoved to the ground, the android pinning him down.

"Come on, Shadow. You were supposed to make this _fun_ for me!" One of its mechanical hands wraps around his throat, choking him. "But I'm not one to argue. If you really _want_ to die, I'll certainly help you with that." It squeezes harder. Shadow puts up a weak struggle.

"Let go of him, creep!" In an instant, a white and purple blur strikes across the Kingdroid, sending it reeling back, and leaving a long gash in its metallic chest. Rouge lands on the other side of the room as Shadow quickly gets back to his feet. She tosses something at him. "Shadow, take this!"

Shadow grabs the object out of the air. It's the green Chaos Emerald. "But, I can't…" Rouge has already delivered another strike at the Kingdroid before it had recovered. Reluctantly, Shadow moves in after her, delivering a spin attack in succession of her kick. They continue this way, each one taking turns striking at the robot, not giving it a chance to protect itself.

Finally, the Kingdroid knocks them both aside with one movement. "Enough!" It walks up to the fallen Rouge first. It grabs her and lifts her violently by the arm. "I don't know who you think you are, _bat girl_! But I will not allow you to stand in the way of my vengeance!"

Shadow growls, "Let her go!" He leaps at it, but is once again knocked away.

"How many times are you going to try that, before you realize that it won't work? You truly must be insane."

Rouge shouts out, "Shadow, what're you doing!? Now's your chance!"

Shadow still grips his green Chaos Emerald in anger. With desperation, he lifts it into the air and shouts, "Chaos Control!" Nothing happens. All wait in silence for a moment.

Finally, the Kingdroid lets out, "Ah…so that's how it is. It seems I've caught you at your weakest. How unfortunate for you."

Rouge lets out a piteous, "Shadow…"

Shadow answers, "Rouge…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have put you in danger by letting you be here. And now, because of my failure, it's all over. I thought that I could defeat King on my own. But I'm nothing without Chaos Control."

"That doesn't matter, Shadow. I came here for _you_. It's not over yet. Shadow, I know you can do it."

A different voice echoes in Shadow's mind _"I know you can do it…"_ He grunts at the unwelcome thought.

Rouge continues, "Shadow, I know you still have a chance!"

 _Maria continues, "Give them a chance…"_

"Keep fighting! For your friends! For everyone!"

Shadow growls incoherently as the memories assault him further. _"I beg of you… For all the people…on that planet…a better future… Everyone's fate depends on…you…" Another voice joins hers. Amy cries, "Please do it for them!" Professor Gerald adds, "The future of this planet depends on…you!" Sonic continues, "You can't just ignore your past, Shadow! It's a part of who you are!" Even King's words echo, "You can ignore the past. But the past will never ignore you." Words and thoughts begin to merge together. "For a better future…you have to learn from…the past… It's a part of who you are! You have to learn! You have to learn! From the past! For the future!" Maria somberly finishes, "That's the reason why you were brought into this world… Please do it for me…"_

Shadow mutters, "Maria…I understand…"

No time appears to have passed. The Kingdroid mocks, "Now isn't that cute? But I've had quite enough of this. I have work to finish." In an instant, it hurls Rouge aside, in the same direction it threw Sonic.

From his spot on the ground, Shadow merely snaps his fingers. In a flash of blue light, he reappears behind Rouge, catches her in the air, and sets her gently on the ground. He snaps again and disappears. The Kingdroid has no time to react before it is struck in the back of the head by Shadow's kick. The force of the blow dislodges a Chaos Emerald, which Shadow catches. He appears on the ground before the android lands, and grabs it by the head. Both are warped away. High above, the android is slammed down onto the moonlit street. Shadow slams down on top of it, then snaps and disappears again. It struggles to get up for a moment, until Shadow delivers another upwards kick to its front, sending it flying. Still in the air, Shadow appears behind it and strikes, launching it in a different direction. Over and over again, Shadow warps into its path, knocks it aside, and warps away to do it again from the other side, knocking the android in every direction without ever landing. Another Chaos Emerald comes out. Finally, Shadow grabs the android and warps them both away once more. They reappear many miles in the air, falling down towards the city at an incredible velocity, Shadow still forcibly holding onto the Kingdroid, glowing red. With all of his pent-up fury, he lets go and shouts, "Chaos Blast!" The fiery red explosion can be seen clearly from the streets below. Shadow reappears on the ground there, closing his eyes and waiting. After a few moments, he suddenly reaches up and grabs the arm of the falling Kingdroid, and both are warped away once more. With all of his own throwing force added to the speed of the android's fall, Shadow slams it into the ground of King's Lair, as Rouge watches on with surprise.

The Kingdroid has left a wide crater in the ground. Shadow pants heavily from the exertion as he approaches the fallen robot.

The Kingdroid stares back up at him, heavily damaged but clearly still functional. "You really think that you can defeat me like this? Ha! This body can survive any attack that you have. What did you think I meant by 'Ultimate Being'!?"

"Well, we'll just have to see about that. Chaos…" He readies a Chaos Spear in his hand. As he continues to charge it, it grows darker in color. He lifts his arm up above the Kingdroid, as if to physically impale it. Despite its words, the android looks up at the attack with what appears to be genuine concern. "Sp–"

"Shadow, stop!" Sonic, bruised and barely standing, holds Shadow's arm in place.

"What're you doing!? Let go of me!"

"This isn't the way, Shadow! You don't have to kill him!"

"Kill? It's not even a person, Sonic! This thing is pure evil! It needs to be destroyed!"

"He's just as much a person as he was before! Or is Omega not a person to you!? Just think about it!"

Shadow hesitates. "I…I still have to do this. It doesn't matter what he is, it matters what he's done. He deserves it for all the people he's hurt."

"No one deserves an end like this! Not even you!" Shadow freezes up completely at the words. "That's what this is about, isn't it? You think that you deserve to be punished for the things you've caused. For your past that you can't change. And you've tried. You wanted the Commander to carry out his revenge against you after the Black Alien invasion. But he asked you to join G.U.N. instead. And you accepted, thinking you could make up for everything through your service. But you figured out that there was no redemption down that path. So instead, you tried to get away from everything. You put on a mask and became a new person, trying to make up for the mistakes of an old one without even realizing it. And now, you're trying carry out what you believe should've been done to you. It all makes sense now. If humanity decided to betray you tomorrow, you would let them, wouldn't you? This isn't the way, Shadow."

After another moment's hesitation, Shadow drops his arm to his side and lets the energy fade away. Rouge nods in understanding of everything. She moves over to the computer console and begins working away.

The Kingdroid, having waited silently all this time, suddenly leaps up and shouts, "Stay away from my technology!" He aims an arm cannon directly at Rouge, and begins charging a bright green light.

Sonic dives at the android, shouting, "Look out!"

Rouge ducks down just in time to avoid the massive green energy laser. An instant later, the beam strays away as the Kingdroid is knocked down. The console has been completely destroyed. Rouge shouts, "That should've been enough! Get him into the pod!"

The Kingdroid knocks Sonic away and trains its cannon on to Shadow. "I wanted to drag this out, but you've forced my hand! Now, you die!" The cannon fires. Shadow disappears long before the beam reaches him. Prepared this time, the Kingdroid turns to direct his fire behind and slightly above him, leaving a massive trail of destruction in the room that Sonic and Rouge both barely avoid. Instead of appearing in the path of the beam, Shadow instead lands on top of the android's head, and rips the final Chaos Emerald from its place. The two are warped away together again.

A moment later, Shadow leaps out from the undamaged pod in the center of the room, and quickly shuts the hatch behind him. A metal hand slams onto the inside of the glass as the pod begins to sink into the ground once more. But this time, Shadow doesn't wait. The red, white, and cyan Emeralds taken from King lift into the air and begin to orbit him, joined by the green one from Rouge. The yellow and purple Emeralds lift away from Rouge and join the orbit around Shadow, as does the blue from Sonic. All seven circle around him. He begins to lift into the air. His spikes, his cloak, and even the broken chains around wrists and ankles begin to billow upwards as he absorbs the Emeralds' power. His exposed fur takes on a white-gold glow. Most interestingly, emblazoned in red energy on his chest appears the same symbol of his throwing weapons, the Black Arms-inspired emblem.

The pod rises out of the ground once more. The hatch pops open, and King's foot steps out from the fog. "Do you really think that you can defeat me so eas–…" He freezes as the fog clears and he lays eyes upon the godlike figure of Super Shadow. Trembling, he aims his single mechanical arm-gun at the gold and black hedgehog. It looks rather pathetic in comparison to the deadly android he had just been. "I'm not afraid of you."

"Oh really? You could've had me fooled. Face it, King. You've lost."

King continues to point. Until Rouge finally grabs both of his arms and crosses them behind his back. She fastens a pair of high-tech handcuffs to his wrists. "By order of the Guardian Units of Nations and the President himself, you are hereby placed under arrest as an international criminal. I'd list out your rights now, but I'm afraid you don't have very many."

"What!? You can't do this to me! This city would fall apart without me!"

"Well we'll just have to see about that, now won't we? Until then, there are some people I know who are very interested to see you."

Right on cue, the door to the lair is knocked down, and a small squadron of G.U.N soldiers swarm in. "Agent Rouge, your backup has arrived."

"I appreciate the thought, but the job's already been done." She indicates towards King. "Take this guy in for me, would you boys?"

"Yes ma'am." Ignoring all other distractions, the soldiers swarm around King and begin to force him out.

Struggling against them, King shouts back, "Mark my words, Shadow the Hedgehog! You haven't seen the last of me! I will get my revenge! I swear it!"

A soldier strikes him with the butt of his gun. "Keep quiet, you."

Shadow has hardly heard a word of it. He floats over Sonic, still on the ground after being knocked away, and offers him a hand. Sonic looks up to Shadow with respect. He takes the hand. The golden light of one hedgehog passes into the other. Sonic doesn't need to stand up as he is lifted into the air by the power of the Emeralds. The bruises and wounds around his body seem to fade away, as the loose bandage around his arm begins to flutter gently. Still clasping hands, Sonic looks to Shadow at eye level. "Now let's go get Eggman."

Shadow snaps his fingers, and the two disappear.

—–—

Eggman stares out a wide window, through which the earliest signs of the approaching dawn can be seen. The unmistakable high-pitched whine of a Chaos Control can be heard behind him. Without moving, Eggman states, "Ah, Sonic, Shadow. I knew you two would show up here eventually. That wolf was certainly intelligent, but he didn't make much of a strategist, did he? Committing himself to a plan he expected to fail. Such a shame. But I certainly benefitted from it." Eggman turns to face them, and lets out a booming laugh. "Oh ho ho!"

Sonic declares, "Give it up, Eggman. Whatever you're planning ends here."

"I couldn't agree more. I've just completed everything I came here to do, and then some! Now, if you don't mind, I'll be on my way. I have no interest in fighting."

Eggman turns around to leave, only to meet the eyes of Shadow. "You aren't going anywhere."

"Ah, Shadow. That's quite a cute costume you're wearing. Such a shame that it's been so damaged now."

"No games. What was your business with King?"

"That business is none of yours. Now, will you let me pass?" Not waiting for an answer, Eggman turns the other way, but is blocked off by Sonic.

"Not happening."

"Oh? And what are you going to do about it? Kill me?"

Shadow looks questioningly to Sonic. Sonic shakes his head.

Eggman continues, "Good, now get out of my way." The hedgehogs still don't move. "Very well, then." Suddenly, Eggman pulls out a remote and presses a button. The floor of the wide room begins to part as Eggman is drawn down into it. Within moments, something else rises back up. "Behold," Eggman begins as the massive machine rises, with him in the cockpit, "the perfect combination of Eggman and King technology! The Egg Alphawolf!" The mech rises completely. It is quadrupedal in the shape of a wild wolf, absolutely massive in size, taking up nearly the entire wide room. Its shoulders and back are mounted with all sorts of weapons. "It really is a shame," Eggman continues. "I had this all ready to betray King and steal all of his research and materials. And then he just gave it to me! But that doesn't mean I wasn't prepared for you."

Sonic shouts, "Ha! You really think that any old robot of yours can beat us with all seven Emeralds? You must be dreaming."

"Oh, I don't intend to defeat you. I intend to escape!" Suddenly, the mech leaps and crashes through the window, shaking the earth as it lands on the street below. It immediately takes off, bounding along the road and away from the building.

"After him!" Sonic and Shadow soar out the open window, and catch up to the robot within moments.

Eggman shouts from inside, "You can't stop me! Your Super Forms will never last long enough!" As he speaks, each of the machine's shoulder-mounted cannons fire at the two speeding hedgehogs, forcing them to corkscrew out of the way.

"Oh yeah? We'll show you!" Dodging a blast from one of the Alphawolf's numerous back turrets, Super Sonic dashes full-force into the mech's side. He bounces off with a loud thud. "What the–!?"

"You fools! My machine has been plated with an alloy of Chaosium, a one-hundred percent Chaos-proof material! The Chaos energy that gives you power cannot possibly pierce it!"

"Chaosium!? That must be what was keeping us in that prison cell!"

To confirm the assertion, Shadow hurls an attack of his own. "Chaos Spear!" It glances harmlessly off of the metal. Eggman laughs again as the high-speed chase continues, Shadow's tattered cloak fluttering like a cape as he soars. Shadow struggles to think of something quickly. "We may not be able to damage that thing under our own power…but I know what can!" Suddenly, Shadow pulls out the Black Cloak throwing weapon in the shape of his emblem, and hurls it with all of his might at the mech. One of the turrets mounted on the Alphawolf targets and fires, vaporizing the projectile instantly.

Eggman shouts, "How do you like that!?"

"Sonic, I only have one left! We need to take out those turrets!"

"Let's do it!" Weaving and diving around a flurry of lasers and bullets, Sonic speeds towards the massive line of weapons, and finally charges right through them, carving a line of destruction.

Shadow hurls Chaos Spears as rapidly as he can manage, each one contacting and destroying one of the countless armaments.

Within minutes, all but the two shoulder-mounted cannons have been destroyed, those apparently being too heavily shielded. Sonic shouts, "Shadow, I think that's the best we're going to get! And we're running out of time! It's now or never!"

"Right!" Shadow pulls out his one last projectile. He aims carefully, takes a deep breath, and throws. The weapon moves in an arc as it flies through the air.

A shoulder cannon takes aim. Sonic shouts, "Oh no you don't!" Sonic zips in front of the cannon, crossing his arms in front of him to defend against the blast that it fires. Sonic is knocked away, but Shadow's projectile keeps going, and deeply embeds itself in an area where a turret had been destroyed.

The projectile explodes. Eggman shouts, "No! Impossible!" A large section of the mech's armor plating has been peeled away, exposing the inside.

"Let's finish this!" Shadow dashes through the weak point, shortly followed by Sonic. The machine jerks and stumbles as it is wrecked from the inside. Sonic crashes back out, but Shadow remains inside. In a moment, his shout can be heard. "Chaos Blast!" Within moments, the entire Alphawolf crumbles apart from the force of the expanding explosion.

The two golden hedgehogs float gently to the floor as their glow begins to fade. The bandage around Sonic's arm slips off, revealing a small but noticeable scar underneath. Though the red energy forming the emblem on Black Cloak's costume fades away, a red mark in that shape remains underneath, permanently emblazoned on its chest.

The seven Emeralds orbit around them. Then six of them streak off in every direction, scattering to be found again at a later time. But one, the yellow Emerald, drifts gently down into Shadow's hand. Shadow looks to Sonic questioningly.

Sonic shrugs. "Guess it thinks you're gonna need it."

Both of them turn with a start as they hear a slow clapping behind them. "A brilliant job, truly a wonderful display of teamwork." The Commander continues to clap as he speaks. "Some of the most skilled work I've ever seen."

Shadow shakes his head. "Flattery doesn't suit you, Commander."

He doesn't answer for a moment. "Very well. You know why I'm here."

"I think we have something more important to attend to right now."

Behind the three of them, Eggman stands up out of the rubble, dusting himself off. Wordlessly, he begins to walk towards them. As he gets close, he nods to them. "Commander."

The Commander nods back. "Doctor."

Sonic exclaims, "What're you doing!? Arrest him!"

"Arrest him? Have you gone mad? Dr. Eggman is the sovereign leader of a member of the United Federation."

Shadow says with confusion, "Sovereign leader?"

Sonic continues, "United Federation?"

Meanwhile, Eggman continues on his way, waving back behind him. "So long, hedgehogs!"

The Commander goes on, "That's correct. Some time ago, the island of Eggmanland applied for admittance into the United Federation, and was accepted. It is now a registered country. To arrest its leader would be a declaration of war."

Sonic shakes his head in disappointment. "So this is the 'reformed G.U.N.,' is it? Looks like some things really can't change."

Shadow shakes his head and sighs, understanding what he must do. "If you aren't going to arrest him…then arrest me."

Sonic cries with as much irritation as concern, "Shadow!"

Another voice shouts from behind them, "Oh, stop being so dramatic, would you?" Rouge walks toward them. "Commander, the building has been completely secured, and the remaining Chaosium has been confiscated."

"Well done, agent Rouge. You're free to return to base."

"I think I'll stay here, if you don't mind. Sir."

Shadow seems irritated at not being taken seriously. "Do I need to list my crimes? Desertion, assault, impeding investigation, resisting arrest…and manslaughter. I killed someone, Commander. I'm a criminal."

"Don't be ridiculous. You're a hero, Shadow. You inspire people, with or without a mask. Any and all crimes that you may or may not have committed in this city, in the past weeks or before, have been pardoned."

"Before…? You…you knew. You knew about King's sister the whole time. You knew that I had killed an innocent civilian, and you let me serve in the military anyways."

"I know that you haven't had a chance to learn this for yourself yet, Shadow. But in a war, casualties happen. It's unavoidable. A soldier who takes down an entire army single-handedly, and accidentally kills one civilian in the process, doesn't get imprisoned. He gets praised. It doesn't make the death any less unfortunate. But that's how the world works."

"So you've been lying to me…just so that I would accept praise as a hero. Just so that I would keep blindly following your orders. Just so that I would keep believing that you were the only one I owed a debt to. Despicable."

The Commander clears his throat, ignoring the rather blunt insult. "Now, we must return to business. Shadow, I've come here to personally inform you that your temporary leave has been approved. You have another week before you'll be expected to return to active duty."

"Nice try. I didn't request any leave, and I'm not coming back. All I ever did there is wait around for something to happen, around an army of people who wouldn't trust me for a second. All the while, people like King were causing havoc in places like this. If I had come here sooner, I could've helped him, instead of imprisoning him."

"You needn't worry about this city any longer. As we speak, G.U.N. is beginning a city reconstruction project. Buildings, roads, everything that was affected by the invasion is going to be repaired, while all traces of King's influence are removed."

"You're having the soldiers do this?"

"Of course. G.U.N. isn't around just to fight wars. We're here to protect the people. I request that you reconsider your stance. Shadow, this world is changing. It's growing. Regardless of who believes it, G.U.N. is changing too. If we can't keep up with the world's growth, we'll never be able to protect the world when it needs us most. That's why we need a soldier like you."

"Just as I thought. You only want me for my abilities. You only want me as a weapon. Well I won't be your tool any longer." Shadow turns and begins walking off, motioning for Sonic and Rouge to follow.

"This isn't a joke, Shadow! Your past crimes may have been pardoned, but that doesn't mean anything for the future!"

"Tch."

The Commander stops to think for a moment. He turns to Sonic, who still stands there. "Sonic, perhaps you…?"

"Not a chance." Sonic moves to follow Shadow.

Rouge looks up to the Commander. "You sure have a way of ticking off the heroes, don't you?" She goes after the other two.

The Commander stays where he stands, pondering.

—–—

 **The Cloak Cavern**

Shadow, Sonic, and Rouge appear in the cavern in a flash of light. Rouge takes a good look around. "So, this is where you've been hiding?"

"I promised answers once this was all over. So here we are." They stand above the puddle of alien sludge that leads to Shadow's house above.

"Is that…?"

"Left over from the Black Arms invasion. They had planned to start attacking from underground, but they retreated from the city before they got the chance. After they left, damage control missed this pathway. The building up above went unsold ever since then. When I learned it was there, I came to investigate. It led down here. Of course, no one else would've been able to know that. I'm the only thing on the planet that can travel through these. I bought the building, tried to keep it as discreet as possible. I removed as many traces as I could of ever having been there. But clearly, I missed something."

Sonic continues, "Because we found the place."

"That's right. You were getting close to finding me out, and I needed to be somewhere. I had to throw you off. So I left out one of my Chaos Emeralds."

Rouge nods. "You figured that if we thought you had been captured and left us with your Emerald, we would start investigating a non-existent kidnapping. Leaving you free of suspicion." Shadow nods in response.

Sonic responds, "That still doesn't explain how all of this started. Why the cloak? Where do the weapons come from?"

"I was getting there. When I first came down here, it wasn't empty." He points over to the table with the old radio. "Those were already there." He points in the opposite direction, to a rock jutting upwards. "And the cloak was hanging right there."

"What does it mean?"

"The radio was already tuned to the police frequency. Either someone set this place up just for me…or someone just like me was doing the same things down here. So I looked into it. The Black Cloak was an old legend from this area. A faceless hero who would only appear in the night, protecting the city for decades, maybe longer, though few believed that he really existed. But soon before the Black Arms invasion, he vanished. I think this was his base. I knew what I had to do."

"You took up the name and the costume, and started saving the city in your own way." Shadow nods. "And the weapons?"

"I told you that I make them. And I do." He walks up to the alien sludge, and kneels down in front of it. Slowly he places the palm of a hand into the puddle. Rather than suck him in entirely, the area that he touches begins to glow slightly, and slowly inch up and around his fingers and palm. He begins to move the hand upwards, and the glowing slime beneath it stretches, remaining attached. He closes his eyes and curls in his fingers, and the ooze begins to respond, condensing into a more definite shape. As it does, it turns to a solid red color.

Shadow closes a fist around it, separating it from the puddle below. He turns the hand upright and uncurls his fingers, revealing the Black Cloak throwing weapon he holds. Rouge expresses surprise.

Sonic questions, "What did you just do? What was that?"

"I had always assumed that these trails of sludge were meant for transportation. And that is one of their purposes. But they do so much more. Black Arms weaponry isn't technology in the sense that you or I understand it. Their weapons are grown from the ground like plants, even the ones that appear to be made of metal. What you just saw is how they do that. This sludge is made up of undifferentiated Black Arms biomass."

Sonic almost involuntarily begins wiping himself off, knowing that he had passed through that sludge.

"Any self-aware individual of the species can shape that biomass into any imaginable form. Or, one's own biomass can be absorbed into the mass, and quickly reformed on the other side. The invasion could've gone far better if I had known all of this back then." After a moment of silence, Shadow turns and begins to move towards the rock he indicated earlier. He begins to remove the cloak, then the rest of the costume. Soon, it's all been hung at the same place he had found it. The red emblem, his contribution to the costume, contrasts sharply against the rest of the black outfit.

Finally, Rouge questions, "So that's it? No more Black Cloak?"

"You heard the Commander. This city doesn't need one anymore. But maybe…if Westopolis ever needs a new hero… someone else will find this place as I have. Then the legend will live on. But I'm done hiding behind masks." He takes the throwing weapon he created, and clips it firmly onto the costume's belt.

Sonic hesitantly asks, "So does that mean…that you'll help me? That you'll teach me?"

"…It always comes back to you, doesn't it? But…if you really are what you say you are…that's exactly the way it should be."

"Shadow, I really do need you. I don't know anything about Chaos or the Emeralds or the Balance. But you do!"

Shadow doesn't respond at first. He takes out the Emerald that remained with him, and stares deeply into it. "Sonic...Why do you think I got Chaos Control back?"

Sonic thinks on the question. "We'll...I guess… Chaos Control...It's such a rush of pure feeling and emotion, almost indescribable. But...If I were to take a guess...I'd say...It's about hope. Just like anything else with Chaos, it's about emotion. But you...you thought it was something else." As he speaks, Sonic gains more and more confidence. "You thought it had to do with justice, a sense of purpose. You came here from G.U.N. because you thought you had lost your purpose. But then nothing changed, and you only had less hope. I think it took Rouge and I to help you realize that you've always drawn your hope from the past, from Maria. Even back when you wanted to destroy the planet with the Eclipse Cannon, you still had that hope. And I think that as long as you keep your promise to Maria in your heart, you'll never lose Chaos Control again."

Shadow nods slowly. "And you think that you need my help?" Sonic moves as if to respond, but thinks of no way to do so. "I think you know more than you think you do. I think that you've learned far more from experience than I ever could from what little instruction I had. What Professor Gerald taught me was…incomplete. It was cut off all too soon, and what instruction I did get was focused more on being a Life Form than being the Ultimate. What I remember from it, at least. The specifics of the nature of Chaos were simply ignored, in favor of more important things." He displays the Emerald he holds for Sonic to see. "Maybe you don't understand why the Emeralds work the way they do, but you do understand how they work, better than I do. Maybe you do need a teacher. But that isn't me. I need the help as much as you do."

Sonic is clearly dissatisfied, but he gives a slow nod.

After another moment of silence, Shadow says, "I have no more business here. Let's go."

—–—

The three reappear, back on street level. Sonic and Shadow look to each other, and give one last nod before Shadow turns to leave. Sonic turns to Rouge. "You know, I think that G.U.N. is so busy chasing after Shadow, they don't realize what they already have. They don't appreciate you."

Rouge shrugs. "Me? I'm just another agent, a good one maybe, but nothing compared to what Shadow can do."

"No, you're an amazing agent. You just saved both of our lives from a killer android, reprogramed his computer to work backwards, and then arrested him, all like it was nothing. I still can't figure out how you found us so quickly."

"Well, that was the easy part. I'd had a hunch for a while, but when you went through that Black Alien sludge I knew that the Black Cloak had to be Shadow. I reported back in to base, and I was assigned to lead a team to shut down King's operations while a smaller team was sent to the cavern to bring you two back to base. All they found was an empty room and signs of a recent struggle. Without you two, we didn't have enough evidence to go after King. Everyone seemed ready to give up, until I found evidence of a secret dungeon and lab in the basement floors of the King Industries building. I had no doubt you two would be there, so we continued with the mission as planned. The hard part was King's computer. Old Frances from the decryption unit had to put me through quite a bit of training with King technology before they would even let me into the city, that's why I showed up so late. That computer was doing things that even I couldn't understand. I'll bet your friend Tails could've figured it out, but luckily for me it was all formatted in a way that let me reverse the process without too much trouble. Well, that, or kill King in the process. It was a win either way, if you ask me."

"After all you had done here, they just sent in another team after Shadow and put you somewhere else? I just don't get it. Why do you stick around with those guys?"

"Look, I have my reasons, alright? I'm not going to leave just because they don't give in to my every will and demand. Maybe they're not perfect, but how could they be? They're doing good for the world, and they want me to help them do it. That's what matters."

Sonic sighs. "I get that. I just think that they don't appreciate you as much as they should. You at least deserve a promotion or something."

"A promotion? I'm already the President's personal spy, a promotion just means more paperwork." She stops to think for a moment. "The President…I almost forgot!" She starts to run off, but turns back to face Sonic as she does. "Oh, and say hi to old Knuckies for me, would you?"

As Rouge runs off, Sonic cocks his head off to one side, as if struck by a new idea.

Before long, Rouge draws near to Shadow, who slowly walks towards the edge of the city. "Hey, hold up!" Shadow looks back to Rouge, but doesn't slow down. In another moment, she catches up. "Where do you think you're going?"

Shadow looks on towards the horizon. "I…I don't know yet. I just need…to think for a while."

"What, you haven't done enough brooding already?" He gives her an odd look. "Oh, I'm just kidding with you. You should take all of the time you need. Anyways, I have a few things for you."

"Things?"

"Before I came out here to look for you, I had a personal meeting with the President. He said he wanted me to give you these if I found you. A sign of good will, in the hopes that you would return to your position in the military."

"I'm not going back."

"Of course not. But these are still yours." First, she takes out a shiny gold medal.

"A medal? I didn't earn any medals."

"Sure you did." She begins reading the inscription, "For strength and bravery in the face of the ARK cataclysm, this medal is awarded to Shadow the Hedgehog, hero of the ARK. Don't you remember? The President showed me the picture you took with Sonic in front of the Executive Office. You were supposed to get a medal after that, but it seemed that you weren't there to receive it."

"That's because I didn't earn any medals. Besides, I had more important things to deal with. Like my missing memories. And the fact that I had just learned I was probably an android. Posing for photographs hardly seemed important at the time. So I left. And I ended up in Westopolis, just in time to find more problems."

"So maybe it didn't seem important to you at the time. But the President, and just about everyone else, disagrees. He's been holding onto the medal for you, hoping to present it to you properly in person. But when he heard you'd disappeared, he wanted to make sure you knew that you were appreciated. You're a hero, and you deserve this." Without giving him much choice, she shoves it into his hands. He begins to examine it carefully. On the opposite side of the inscription, and elegant picture of the ARK surrounded in fire with the Earth beneath it is engraved. "This world needs heroes, people it can count on, and you should know that better than anyone. The medal isn't about praising you for your heroics. It's about letting the world know that they can count on you. And they can. That's why you deserve it."

Shadow's only response is to look up to the dawn sky, at a point of light which can only be the ARK. After just a few moments, the light of the sun becomes too bright to see it any longer.

"There's something else, too." Shadow looks back to her. "When I was looking into your disappearance…looking for any clue I could possibly find…I stumbled across a single file with restricted access. Classified beyond even my own credentials, and I had top clearance as far as I knew. So I took it to the President. He didn't know about it either. But he agreed that if it had even a slight chance of helping to bring you back, it was worth looking into. So he accessed it for me. Neither of us could've guessed what it was. But we both agreed that it was something that shouldn't have been kept from you." She takes out a tablet-like device similar to the one that the Commander had shown to Sonic.

Shadow seems to be quite perplexed by what Rouge has been saying. But he extends a hand to take the device. She doesn't hand it over. "Well?"

"Remember, this isn't something you can share, it's top secret. You're about to become the fourth person on the planet to know about it."

"Fourth?"

"I'll give you one guess on who else knows the full story."

Shadow doesn't need much time to think. "The Commander." Rouge nods in response, but doesn't take any other action. "Is there something else?"

"Shadow…before you look at this…there's something I want to tell you. You may not like what you see in here. But…even if you believe everyone in the world will be against you…know that I'll always remain by your side. Remember that."

Shadow seems more confused than ever, as if the words were familiar somehow. But he nods. "I will."

Slowly, she places the device in his hand, and lets go. Shadow takes a deep breath, and activates it. The file is already open. The title reads, "Project: Sunlight — The New Ultimate Life Form."

 **The end of one adventure…**

 **And the beginning of another.**


	18. S0 E14: Project: Sunlight

**Previously in the Sonic the Hedgehog Series…**

[Prof. Gerald]: _(As seen in Sonic Adventure 2)_ "…the military guards landed on the colony that day…The ARK was shut down under the premise that there had been an 'accident'. …I found Maria's name among those who died when the ARK was shut down…Based on my original projections, I was able to complete my project, Shadow. I designed its mind to be perfect, pure. I will leave everything to him."

—–—

[Black Doom]: _(As seen in Shadow the Hedgehog)_ "We are more alike than you think. The same blood runs through our veins…You are a part of me…"

[Prof. Gerald]: "It's all my fault…making contact with that comet…only you can stop them!"

[Maria]: "Don't worry, grandfather. Shadow and I will protect this planet. Right, Shadow?"

—–—

[Mephiles]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. He holds out the purple Chaos Emerald to Silver.)_ "…And you have _this_ person to blame."

[Silver]: _(He takes the Emerald, and his mind is assaulted by a vision of a figure standing in flames.)_ "I see it!"

—–—

[Eggman]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog.)_ "Now, allow me to introduce you to my latest creation. _This_ is the Solaris prototype. With this machine, I'll be able to control the flow of time itself!"

—–—

[Mephiles]: _(As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. He takes several hits from Omega's weapons.)_ "This only proves that you were created to stop Shadow…" _(He laughs as he disappears.)_

[Omega]: "SHADOW…THE ONE THAT DEFEATS AND SEALS YOU IN THE FUTURE…IS ME… EVENTUALLY, WHEN SOMEONE OR SOMETHING BECOMES TOO POWERFUL…IT IS SEEN AS A THREAT. AND THEN THE WORLD BECOMES ITS ENEMY."

—–—

[Tikal]: _(As seen in Sonic Adventure. She stands in between the shrine and her tribe.)_ "I won't obey! Greed is our enemy!"

[Pachacamac]: "I don't listen to the words of a child. Ready, men! Charge!" _(They blow past her, only to be blocked by the watery Chaos creature, absorbing the power of the Emeralds.)_

—–—

[Sonic]: _(As seen in_ _S0 E13_ _.)_ "Chaos Control...It's about hope…And I think that as long as you keep your promise to Maria in your heart, you'll never lose Chaos Control again."

 **And now, the continuation…**

* * *

 **From the last confessions of Lt. Alfred Robotnik**

 _He's dead. How it all happened…I can hardly comprehend. I'm not proud of what I've done. But I had to do it. I couldn't have lived any other way. I was broken. Destroyed. Everything that I had left was ripped away from me. My wife, whom they must have suspected of involvement based on her single visit to the ARK. My father, Gerald, executed under false pretenses. My sweet daughter, Maria, her only legacy a name on a list of those killed in the "accident" which led to the shutdown of the station. Oh poor, young Maria. If I only hadn't let you go with your grandfather to the ARK, you might have spent your brief life at home, with me, instead of in the endless isolation of space. All–_

Shadow suddenly deactivates the tablet-like device on which he reads the unbelievable file, and looks up to the sky, as if ready to burst out with some emotion, perhaps sorrow, or pity, or anger, or something else entirely. But instead, as always, he regains his composure.

He sits beneath a lone, tall, leafy tree, surrounded on all sides by gentle, sloping hills. The hill Shadow sits on is layered with grass, but most of the nearby area is covered by rocks and dirt. Around Shadow's hill runs a thin creek, likely formed by snow melt from the white-capped mountains visible far to the north. But to the south, a thin pillar of smoke still rises from the buildings of Westopolis, destroyed by Eggman's latest rampage. A cool Spring wind blows through the area. The sun shines brightly, but Shadow sits comfortably in the shade of the tree.

He sighs as he thinks back to the few hours ago that had felt like days, as he had run through all of the possibilities in his mind, each more horrendous than the last.

 _Rouge had started by telling him, "I stumbled across a single file with restricted access…it was something that shouldn't have been kept from you." Slowly, she had placed the device with the file in his hand. The file was already open. The title had read, "Project: Sunlight — The New Ultimate Life Form."_

 _Shadow had nearly dropped the device at that moment. It felt as if he had been struck in the stomach, as if he couldn't breathe. He absolutely had to see what that file said, but he couldn't will his body to look at it, no matter how hard he tried._

 _"I can go now, if you'd rather be alone," Rouge had said._

 _"No," Shadow had answered almost immediately. "I'll go." He looked up to the Westopolis skyscrapers above him. "I need to get out of this city."_

 _"Alright. But remember what I said. If you ever need me, you know where to find me."_

 _Shadow had only nodded in response. Then he turned to leave the city for the last time. Almost immediately, he stopped and started to glance at the device. But he still couldn't. The time wasn't right yet. He needed to get farther. Farther away from the newest place to haunt his fragile memories._

Back in reality, Shadow takes a heavy breath, before looking to the unbelievable file once more.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 14**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 1: Project: Sunlight**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

 _If I only hadn't let you go with your grandfather to the ARK, you might have spent your brief life at home, with me, instead of in the endless isolation of space. All I had left was my young nephew Ivo, whom I was in no condition to take care of. I have no idea what's become of him since that day. I suppose I should begin there—the day the ARK shut down._

—–—

 **Ground Research Facility EDEN**

 **52 Years Ago**

A tall, moderately well-built man with a short-cropped mustache and large round glasses works at a computer console in a whitewashed room.

 _It had not been long since I discovered the corruption that ran through the entire military. In order to keep me quiet, they agreed to anonymously fund my own research facility. The alternative was to lose my commission as a military doctor, and be put on trial for treason. Naturally, I accepted the former option. Unsure of where else to begin, I started researching Neuro Immunodeficiency Syndrome—Maria's Disease._

 _My father and I hadn't spoken in many years. But he was pleased to learn that I would be assisting in the research he had been working on since Maria was born. He sent me all of the information he had on the subject, including his personal diary. He also said something that I didn't understand at the time. He said that his research was near to a breakthrough that would do far more than cure this single disease. I had only just begun to look through the information, when everything changed._

A massive crash shakes the earth and interrupts the man's studying. After another moment, everything becomes calm again. Wordlessly, the man stands and cautiously begins to move outside. As the door opens, a massive crater can be seen in the otherwise flat earth. More curious than ever, the man moves closer. At the center of the crater lies a heap of metal and glass. But a few patches of black fur can be seen underneath. The man seems to realize this, and runs down to the center, then begins digging through the rubble.

 _Just outside of the facility, I discovered the wreckage of an escape pod. It must have suffered some sort of catastrophic malfunction, as it detonated soon after entering the atmosphere. It took only a few quick mental calculations to determine that the ARK would have been overhead at the time the pod would have been launched. As if the pod could have come from anywhere else. What amazed me was how intact the deceased remains of whomever was in the pod were. At least, that is what I thought at first._

The man clears away the last of the rubble, revealing the unconscious form of Shadow the Hedgehog.

 _What I found weren't remains, but a complete, living organism. He was heavily damaged, but otherwise alive and well. I couldn't see how it was possible. But I took the strange life form to a stasis pod, where he could regenerate. None of it made any sense. My only thought was to look further into my father's research. I found only a few references to a top-secret project researched under the orders of the President, nothing conclusive about this strange being in my facility. Until I looked to his diary. I finally found the answer. Project: Shadow. The Ultimate Life Form, artificially created for research into the indefinite extension of biological life. Immortality. Though he had rejected the project at first, he changed his mind all because of Maria. If there is any cure to an incurable disease, it may lie in a life form that cannot die._

 _But the project was flawed. The prototype, in the form of a lizard, was deemed impersonable and violent, and the project was nearly shut down there. But it was continued in secret. My father created a new life form, in the form of a hedgehog. And somehow, he ended up in my front yard. Could it have been intentional? Even now I can't say for certain. At the time he sent me the copy of his diary, he surely must have known that something was wrong. I can only assume that he wanted me to have what was written there. But the final entry of the diary was incomplete. The final words: "I don't quite know what happened, or what went wrong. Was it a mistake to create the Ultimate Life Form?"_

 _It wasn't until the next day that I received word, along with the rest of the public, of an unspecified biohazard accident that forced the evacuation of the ARK. It's ironic, I suppose, that the ARK, a place of salvation from disaster, is the place where disaster struck. Maria was among the list of those killed, along with my father's entire research team. And suddenly, everything made sense to me. It was all because of Shadow. He was the one who killed Maria._

—–—

 **Present Day—March 20th, 0 B.E.**

 **Eggmanland**

A blinding light illuminates the face of Doctor Eggman as a high-pitched whine drowns out all other sound in the room. He looks into a glass chamber, where a hunk of metal is assaulted by a highly-focused beam of blinding red light from above. After a moment, the metal begins to glow red-hot. Eggman nods in approval. Then sparks even brighter than the light begin to fly from the metal, forcing Eggman to shield his eyes. After another moment, the entire hunk of metal seems to explode, ending the light and the sound. When the light from the explosion clears, all that remains is a chamber full of metal shrapnel.

Orbot speaks from a computer console across the room, "I'm sorry, sir. Chaosium synthesis has failed."

Eggman growls in disappointment. "It seems that wolf was right after all. The Chaos-proof metal really is impossible to manufacture. Put the project on hold, there's no reason to pursue it any farther for now."

"Yes, sir."

Eggman turns to the other side of the room. "Cubot, how is our other experiment progressing?"

"All simulations have been a complete success, sir. Gee, you'd think making metal would be easier than sending messages through time."

Orbot chimes in, "If you don't mind my asking sir, what do you intend to use this new experiment for? Used correctly, you could change the entire course of history!"

Cubot continues, "Yeah, like maybe you could tell your younger self not to grow that hideous mustache!"

Eggman growls again, and Cubot takes the hint. He clears his throat and resumes, "You see Orbot, I must be cautious with such a radical technology. If I'm not careful, I could erase myself from existence. But I believe that I've found the right place to start, by taking a little inspiration from my dear old Uncle Alfred. But first, I must be certain of exactly what I need to say. Reopen King file number 19910623 for me. I have a confession to finish reading."

Within moments, the same file which Shadow was reading comes up on the large screen in the center of the room. Eggman begins reading.

 _It was all because of Shadow. He was the one who killed Maria. It all made sense. Father couldn't control the violent tendencies of his own creation. It struck out against him, tried to escape. The military tried to get it under control, but of course they couldn't let the public know that they were secretly researching something so dangerous and uncontrollable. So they lied about it, as they always do, called it an accident. And after all of the damage that Shadow did to the ARK, he escaped. Or perhaps was set free by some act of sympathy, and left in my care._

 _I was lost. There was so much death all around me, while I had the key to immortality sitting in my basement. I knew I couldn't wake him, or he would kill me as well. But if I could tap into his secrets, I could at least cure the disease that ruined my daughter's life…that ruined_ my _life. And all of the information used to create him was in my computer banks. Slowly, I realized. If I could figure out what went wrong with the original Ultimate Life Form, I could create a new one, one that could truly save humanity._

 _I got to work immediately. I went through his brain first. I analyzed every nerve, every synapse, hoping to find a clear indicator of what could have led to his violence. Not only did I find no such indicator, but I found evidence of tampering, primarily in the amygdala, which would dull the experience of negative emotion. I came to the conclusion that father made these changes himself, in some sort of attempt to purify the creature's mind after the failure of the prototype. Clearly, his attempts were unsuccessful. Studies of the brain were inconclusive. So I moved on to his DNA structure. And I found something that I couldn't believe. For the most part, his DNA matched up with that of a normal hedgehog, with many modifications of course. But there were several extra chromosomes which I couldn't account for, which I would've expected to wreak havoc on any normal organism. The structure of those chromosomes…it was like nothing I've ever seen before. It didn't make any sense by conventional standards. It was…alien._

—–—

The man, Lt. Alfred Robotnik, is again at work at the computer console in his research facility. But this time, next to the console sits some sort of large pod, filled with a green fluid.

 _Though I had already read through it all, I combed through my father's diary once more. There was no direct reference to any kind of extraterrestrial encounter. But I did find something. A vague reference to a means to a breakthrough that my father had found…at a price. A price that would have catastrophic results if paid. But he said that he had a plan, and that was the last that was mentioned of it. That journal entry was made on the final day that the Black Comet would have been visible in the sky. I'd heard the conspiracy theories before, claiming that the Black Comet was inhabited by extraterrestrials of malicious intent, but I never would have believed it. But the proof was right in front of me. Shadow was some sort of alien hybrid, I had no doubt. And if that much was true, I could only assume that it was this alien DNA that had made him evil._

Alfred suddenly gets up and walks over to the pod. He tugs at his mustache in deep contemplation. Then he turns around and sits back down, not to work, but to think.

 _My work could all begin from there. If I could create a new hedgehog without the infusion of alien DNA, then the true Ultimate Life Form could finally exist._

 _And I did._

 _It took 10 long years. There were many failures, many times I was prepared to give up. Most often I found that the subject's neural pathways were unable to remain cohesive, resulting in complete brain-death. I can only assume that this was the same problem that father faced. But I found my own solution. The Chaos Emeralds._

Alfred gets up again, but passes the pod entirely this time. He continues into another, more darkly-lit room. He looks around him, as if to make sure no one is watching. Then he quickly enters a code into a pad on the wall, causing the entire wall panel to slide to the side, and revealing the seven Chaos Emeralds inside. Their rainbow of color illuminates his face.

 _They weren't easy to gather. But once I did, I was able to harness their energy to keep the subject's brain together. And he survived. He was complete. All that was left was wake him up._

 _I was so uncertain. If my theories were wrong, I would unleash something on to the world with the power to conquer it. Or destroy it. I could have stopped everything there, satisfied with the fact that I had succeeded where my father had failed. He didn't need to be awake to learn from him. But…in the time I spent creating him…I grew attached to him. He began to feel like a son to me. A son who could destroy the world. I didn't know what to do. But I looked to the Chaos Emeralds, the source of his life, and I saw…_

Alfred closes the wall panel and returns to the pod. He stares into the glass case, the green fluid beneath, and the life form he knows lies inside.

 _…I saw no evil, no destruction. Only peace, and Balance. So I did it._

Suddenly, he slams down on a button on the front of the pod, and the fluid inside begins to drain.

 _I awakened the New Ultimate Life Form._

The lid of the pod pops open, releasing a torrent of steam. But slowly, the steam begins to clear, revealing the form of a hedgehog, one which might be mistaken for Shadow. But as the light that shines upon him clears, it becomes clear that he is definitely not Shadow. His fur is primarily a silvery white, with streaks of green in his spikes. His gloves are turquoise-blue, and his socks and the cuffs of his gloves are red. His shoes, appearing similar to Shadow's, are purple on the top, with a dark blue trim. One who has seen into the future might know him as Blacklight.

Slowly, he opens his yellow eyes. He begins to look back and forth, a curious look on his face. Alfred looks on with excitement.

Finally, the hedgehog begins to speak. "… … …This feels weird."

Alfred lets out with a smile, "Hello, Sunlight. I'm so glad to finally meet you."

"Sunlight…that is me?" Alfred nods. The hedgehog begins to pat around on his chest and arms. When he finishes with that, he starts rubbing his hand all over his own face. He looks back to Alfred, more curious than ever. "Sunlight is made of photons. But I am solid. I don't understand."

Alfred begins to laugh, all the while keeping a bright smile on his face. "No, you see, Sunlight is your name, not what you are made of."

"My name? So…it's meaningless, then?"

"Meaningless? Not at all. Your name is how people identify who you are. It's how people understand you."

"Understand…I want to understand more. Tell me more." Without waiting for an answer, the hedgehog now called Sunlight steps out of the pod and begins to look around more.

"Then let's start with me. My name is Alfred. I am your f–…your creator."

"Creator…so you made me exist. Why?"

"Well, that's…quite a long story, perhaps another–"

"Alfred. I don't know what Alfred is. That does not help me understand you at all. You should have a different name. I like your mustache. Your name should be Mustache."

Alfred clears his throat. "I'm afraid it doesn't quite work that way. Perhaps you–"

"What's in this room?" Sunlight begins to walk towards the room that Alfred had just come out of, the one that contains the Chaos Emeralds. "It feels nice."

Alfred quickly runs to cut him off. "Hold on, let's not go in that room just yet."

Sunlight glares at him oddly. Then he shrugs, and walks off in a different direction.

 _And Sunlight was born._

—–—

Shadow turns off the device again. He sighs and shakes his head, unsure of what to think. The first words of the document ring in his head. _"He's dead."_

"I…I had…a brother…? And he's…dead?"

Not yet ready to resume reading, he pulls out a sparkling yellow Chaos Emerald instead. He stares deeply into it. "What does it all mean?" He looks up to the sky. The sun has progressed far, as twilight begins to draw near. He holds the Emerald up to the sun, and the bright sunlight refracts through it, and onto his face. "Sunlight…"

He puts down the Emerald, and picks up the device again. With another sigh, he resumes reading.

 _It wasn't easy at first. He was so naive, and so demanding, so much like a child. But slowly, he learned. And I loved him through every moment of it. I taught him as much about being a person as I did about what I knew of Chaos based on my father's research. I quickly learned that he possessed the ability to sense the Chaos Emeralds, and it became more and more difficult to keep him away from them. He wasn't ready for that kind of power. But I decided that he was ready for something else._

—–—

Alfred leads Sunlight into the dim room where the Chaos Emeralds are held. Immediately, Sunlight looks to the panel that hides them. But rather than open it, Alfred continues to lead him down a flight of stairs, into the basement.

Immediately visible inside is another pod, this one's contents clearly visible. Shadow lays unconscious inside.

Sunlight approaches the pod with caution. "What…what is it?"

Alfred walks to stand behind him. "That…is Shadow."

"Shadow…the place where sunlight does not reach. I understand."

"That's correct."

"Does that mean I should leave?"

"No no, you see, I brought you here to learn…a little more about yourself."

"I already understand myself. I am Sunlight. I was created using the Chaos Emeralds to bring Light to the world. What else is there to learn?"

"You see, Shadow here was a lot like you. He was also an artificial life form, made to bring Light. But something went wrong. He betrayed his creator, and…he killed someone I loved."

"So he was made to do something…and then he did something else? You can do that? But then…could they not guess from his name that he would betray them? After all, a shadow can't bring light. Perhaps names are even more useful than I thought."

Alfred isn't sure how to respond, so he continues with the story instead. "This Shadow…he is a villain. He is evil. He is violent, and his violence destroys. But you…I made you to fix his flaws. Everything that he failed to be, you can be now."

"So does that make me some sort of…copy?"

"A copy? No. You are his better. You are the true Ultimate Life Form."

Sunlight seems to think on this for a long time. Then he looks back up to Alfred, as if preparing to say something profound. "…I'm bored. Let's go somewhere else." Without an answer, he turns to leave. Reluctantly, Alfred follows.

 _I showed him his predecessor. And he hardly seemed to care. But…I think it affected him more than he was willing to admit. I was finding him…thinking. Independently, something he had never done before. And he began to act strangely. One moment he would be enthralled by a lesson, and the next he would be ready to fall asleep. He would grow angry at the most arbitrary things, and laugh at his own pain. It was as if he was at war with himself. I tried all I could to keep him calm and at peace. But I saw him slipping from my control._

—–—

Eggman appears to be in the middle of a speech. "…And in return, I ask just one small favor of you. I want you…to destroy Shadow the Hedgehog."

After a moment of silence, Orbot's voice speaks, "Message recorded, sir."

"Very good. Is the Emerald ready?"

Orbot pulls a glowing purple Emerald out of a machine. "Yes, sir. But…sir…?"

"What is it?"

"Didn't Shadow save the planet from the alien invasion? Destroying him before he can do that might destroy the entire world."

"Save the planet? Ha! I had an entire fleet, an entire army prepared to fight the Black Aliens with, before Shadow destroyed it all. Without him to get in the way, I would have been able to drive off the aliens myself, and then use the fleet to take over the world! And once Shadow is destroyed, that's exactly what I'll have done. Sonic can come later."

"That's…that's…"

Cubot jumps in. "That's the most brilliant plan you've ever had!"

Eggman seems satisfied. "Thank you, Cubot. Now, let's get this plan underway!"

Orbot finishes quietly, "That's…not what I was going to say…" Regardless, Orbot takes the Emerald into a wide, circular chamber, and places it on a pedestal inside. Eggman stands in an elevated room, looking down through a window into the chamber. The room is filled with colorful lights and panels.

Eggman begins to rant, "Using all that I've learned about the timespace-manipulating qualities of the Chaos Emeralds, with a little help from King, I've at last been able to complete this Chaos Control Prototype. Using the Chaos Emerald's own power, I can send it back through time, containing the message I just recorded."

"But…wouldn't it have been easier just to go back and deliver the message yourself?"

"Are you crazy? This thing is a one-way trip! I'd send a robot, but tests have already confirmed that technology breaks down in the time-travelling process. A Chaos Emerald is the only way." He stops to think. "Hm. Maybe you two should get in there after all."

Cubot shouts, "Okay!"

Cubot moves into the chamber, but Orbot pulls him back. "Actually, let's not do that. Trust me."

Eggman shouts, "Enough fooling around! It's time to bend space and time to my will! Hmph!" Eggman slams a finger down on a button, and the roof of the chamber begins to glow with an intensely bright purple light. The light quickly spreads like a wave down along the walls of the chamber, as the Emerald inside emits a dismal glow to match. Sparks of purple lightning arc between the Emerald and the field of light around it. Eggman smiles in satisfaction, and walks over to a large red lever. Just as forcefully, he grabs it and pulls. The Emerald begins to lift into the air, swirling around faster and faster as it rises. The moment it contacts the roof, a bright flash of blue swallows it, and the entire field of light collapses in on itself with one final spark of blue lightning. The Emerald is gone.

—–—

The outside wall of EDEN is visible.

 _It was a day that seemed much like any other. If anything, I thought that Sunlight might finally be recovering, he was far more quiet than usual. I was studying his biology for potential cures to diseases, as I spent so much time doing. I wasn't paying attention to him. And he broke out._

Suddenly, the wall explodes outwards, revealing Sunlight with an outstretched hand on the other side. He looks at his hand, surprised at his own strength, and gives a resounding "Hm!" He steps out of the newly-formed exit, and begins to look around.

 _He went right into the city, and began causing trouble. The people didn't understand, how could they? He wasn't ready to go out on his own yet! Someone called the police. And he fought back, how could he have done anything else!? The military was called in. And they tore him apart. He never stood a chance. Now he's dead. And it's all my fault._

Contrary to the story of Lt. Alfred, something catches Sunlight's eye on the ground. He walks up for a closer look. It's the purple Chaos Emerald. Slowly, cautiously, he reaches down to pick it up. The moment he comes into contact with it, his mind is assaulted with an image.

Eggman stands in a sea of darkness, and turns to face Sunlight. "Hello, Sunlight. My name is Doctor Eggman. And I am a sort of…fan of yours. I wish for you only success in your pursuit of freedom. That's why I have gifted you with this Chaos Emerald. With it, you can unlock unlimited power! And in return, I ask just one small favor of you. I want you…to destroy Shadow the Hedgehog."

Sunlight opens his eyes, holding the Emerald right up to his face. Its ominous glow reflects in his eyes, and almost seems to fill his entire body. Finally, he begins to lower the gem again. "…Eggman, hm? A perfect name, I must say." He looks back towards the facility, where he knows Shadow lies, asleep and vulnerable. He shrugs. "Eh, maybe later. I don't really feel like it." He looks back to the Emerald. "And you, my little friend, are coming with me." He strokes a hand over it, as one would to a pet. He turns and walks off towards a city that can be seen in the distance.

—–—

Shadow puts down the device for the final time. For a long time, he says and does nothing. The sun on the horizon is just seconds away from reaching perfect twilight. Shadow shakes his head, still unsure of what to think. "Why did he break out? …Was he really just confused? Or…was there something wrong with him?" He closes his eyes, and buries his head in one hand. When he opens his eyes again, the entire world around him has been destroyed.

 **To be continued…**


	19. S0 E15: Project: Needlemouse

_The people didn't understand, how could they? He wasn't ready to go out on his own yet! Someone called the police. And he fought back, how could he have done anything else!? The military was called in. And they tore him apart. He never stood a chance. Now he's dead. And it's all my fault._

Shadow puts down the device for the final time. For a long time, he says and does nothing. The sun on the horizon is just seconds away from reaching perfect twilight. Shadow shakes his head, still unsure of what to think. "Why did he break out? …Was he really just confused? Or…was there something wrong with him?" He closes his eyes, and buries his head in one hand. When he opens his eyes again, the entire world around him has been destroyed.

No longer is he surrounded by wide, grassy hills, but dull, infertile dirt, riddled with countless craters. The sky has been completely covered by ominous, smoky red clouds.

"What!?" Shadow steps back with a start, and bumps into the dead, rotting tree behind him. He turns to look at it with even greater shock. He looks all the way around, hoping for some indication of what's happened. He finds nothing.

Still looking shocked and stressed, he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He clutches his head and thinks. "There are…two possibilities. Either…I've somehow lost consciousness or memory for…" He looks back to the dead tree. "…years, at least, and somehow ended up at the same place, standing in the same position as I started. Or…somehow…the entire world has been destroyed in the blink of an eye."

Slowly, Shadow realizes what he's standing on. He bends down to pick it up. It isn't the device that he had put down, but a long piece of paper covered in handwriting. He begins to look over it. "It's…it's the same story…" He keeps looking, until he reaches the end, suddenly realizing that it isn't the same.

 _Somehow…he got ahold of one of the Chaos Emeralds, I still can't explain how it was possible. He went right into the city, and began wreaking havoc. The people didn't understand how dangerous he was, how could they? He didn't have control over his powers yet! Someone called the police. And they fled from his power, how could they have done anything else!? The military was called in. And he tore them apart. They never stood a chance. His wake of destruction spread, and now he's declared himself the conqueror of the world. And it's all my fault._

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 15**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 2: Project: Needlemouse**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

"Well…I guess that answers the first question." Shadow shakes his head. "Somehow…time has been altered. But then…why do I know about it? Why wasn't I changed with the rest of the world?"

Struck by a sudden idea, he pulls out the yellow Chaos Emerald. It glows intensely bright. "Its energy is…draining. As if it's…keeping me here somehow."

 _Sonic's words echo in his mind, "Guess it thinks you're gonna need it."_

Shadow continues to stare at the Emerald. Its very outside corners seem to be dulling in color, despite the bright light that the gem emits. "It doesn't have enough energy to keep this up forever. I have to do something." He growls in frustration, unsure of exactly what it is he has to do.

Then he calms down, and takes a deep breath. "If Sonic were here, and he had his own Emerald, we could use Chaos Control to make a space-time rift, and try to fix whatever's going on here. But he isn't. So there must be another way. Someone, somewhere, altered the course of time…for the worse. Even if Sonic could mess up so terribly, he wouldn't have enough energy to make a space-time rift without me. Which means it had to be done…with a machine. There are only two people in the world smart enough to make a machine like that." He looks around one last time. "And only one of them would do this with it. The Doctor." He looks back at the Emerald. "I can't risk doing this more that once, there isn't enough energy. I have to hope I'm right."

He closes his eyes, and an image of Maria appears in his head. _"Please do it for me…"_

Shadow nods. _"Always for you…for a better future."_ He lifts the Emerald into the air. "Chaos Control!" He warps away in a flash of bright blue light.

—–—

 **Eggmanland…?**

Shadow drops down onto the ground, and looks around. This new place seems little different from the last, save that the sky is a darker color. He begins to move forward, eyeing all around as he goes.

Suddenly, a familiar voice says calmly, "I don't know who you are, but you should leave now."

Shadow turns with a start to the source of the voice. "Sonic!?" Standing atop a tall mound of dirt and rock, back turned towards Shadow, is Sonic the Hedgehog.

He still doesn't turn. "Final warning. Get out."

"Sonic, I don't know what's going on here, but I'm here to help."

Suddenly, Sonic turns. A long scar runs down the left side of his face, passing over his dull, grey left eye. "Yeah, like I haven't heard that one before." Shadow gasps, as the half-blind Sonic begins to take a closer look at him. "You…you look like _him_. _He_ sent you, didn't he!? Well, I'm not letting you go back to _him_!" Sonic dives down at Shadow with top speed.

Shadow backflips out of the way. "Sonic, you have to listen to me, I'm the only one who can fix this!"

"I won't take any of your _lies_!" He charges a spindash, and launches at Shadow with full force.

Much as he has before, Shadow catches the spinning ball in his hands, and throws it off to the side. "I don't want to fight you, I need to see the Doctor, I need to see Eggman!"

Sonic is ready to throw another attack, but he freezes in place. "Did you say…Eggman?"

Shadow nods. "Unless you happen to have a Chaos Emerald?"

Sonic seems to take that as a joke, and ignores it. "I don't know how you know the name Eggman…but it's enough. I'll believe you. For now."

"Then you can take me to him?"

Sonic sighs. "Follow me." He begins to walk off, and Shadow obediently follows.

—–—

Sonic seems to have led Shadow deep underground. Sonic seems to be in the middle of saying, "That paper of yours just about sums it up. Forty years ago, this guy came out of nowhere and started terrorizing the planet."

"But why?"

"All I know is…he's insane. Some people say he does it for fun, some say he was wronged somehow, some say he's just an evil person and that's all there is to it."

"I don't believe that. What if he was…tricked, somehow?"

Sonic looks at him oddly. "Well, that would be one heck of a trick then. Because it started all of this."

"And he really did all of this? Just one hedgehog?"

"Not exactly. For a long time…it was a monarchy ruled by fear. But it was still society. And then…almost two years ago…the Black Comet came back." Shadow takes on a look of grudged understanding. "No one knows exactly what was said, or how it happened, but somehow, he agreed to help the aliens from that comet to destroy the world. The population was decimated within a week. Alien gas destroyed most of the planet's plant life. And just when it seemed like Earth was about to become the new home of the Black Aliens…he turned around and destroyed them instead." Shadow nods, perhaps wondering how close he came to bringing his Earth to the exact same fate. "He's grown even more violent since then. He'll destroy anything and anyone who crosses his path. We're doing all we can to survive down here. But it isn't easy. One wrong move, and we could be obliterated. You really don't know anything about this?"

"I already told you, I'm from another timeline. None of this should be happening."

"And you think you can change it?"

Shadow takes out the Emerald. The entire outside seems to have grown dull and grey, with a yellow light still emitting from the core. "If it were impossible, I don't think I would be here. But I don't have much time."

They remain silent for a while. Then Sonic stops. "We're here." Much louder, he shouts, "Ivo, we have a visitor!"

The voice of Eggman seems to shout from nowhere, "A visitor!? You let an outsider into our base!?"

"He says he can help us, and I believe him! Let us in!"

A moment later, the rock wall beside them seems to slide open, revealing a metallic room inside. Sonic walks in, indicating for Shadow to follow.

Though the room is plated in metal, it seems like it may have been a rushed, patched job. Plates of metal of inconsistent size and color intersect each other with little clear pattern. A few machines which seem to be similarly haphazardly thrown together litter the room.

"So, who is it that you trust so much as to reveal the location of our base?" Dr. Eggman steps forward from the shadows. Though he is still quite heavy set, he seems a little bit thin, making his clothes seem a bit too large on him. One side of his mustache is noticeably larger than the other, and a large crack runs through one side of his glasses.

Sonic continues to walk until he stands between the two. "Ivo, this is Shadow. He says he's from another timeline, one where none of this ever happened." He turns back to Shadow. "Shadow, this is Ivo. Or, as you called him…Eggman."

"He called me what!?"

"Calm down, Ivo. If what he says is true, then he should know any number of things that wouldn't make sense to us. Like that nickname of yours."

"Hmm…another timeline, you say?" He looks Shadow right in the eyes. "And you think that you can do what we've been trying to for all these years?"

"Only with your help. Lucky for you, you seem more willing to cooperate than I was expecting."

Sonic chimes in, "That's the other thing, Ivo. He knows about the Prototype. Or at least, he assumes you have it. Show him."

"Hmm…I'm not sure that I trust him. He seems obnoxious. Like you."

"Yeah, whatever. He's a good fighter, unlike you, and his story holds up. I say we show him."

Eggman, or rather, Ivo, gives a slight smirk. "Very well. Come along." Ivo turns and walks towards another room. Sonic and Shadow follow.

They arrive in a room full of buttons and panels, looking down on a familiar glass chamber. Ivo begins, "Behold, the Chaos Control Prototype! Using the power of just one Chaos Emerald, I can transport it, along with one holder, backwards through time. We can put a stop to _him_ before he ever came to power, all using the very source of his power. It's completely functional…theoretically. Trouble is…we still need a Chaos Emerald to power it with."

Sonic adds, "That's what we were working on before you showed up. A plan to swipe just one Emerald."

Shadow takes out his still-dulling yellow Emerald. "Well, that won't be necessary anymore. We can get started right now."

Ivo looks at the gem curiously. "Is it supposed to look like that?"

"No, which is why we need to hurry. I power your machine, you send me back in time. Do we have a deal?"

Ivo takes a long thought. "Hmm… You've certainly given us no reason to mistrust you. But I'm sure you understand the gravity of your suggestion. You just walk in here and expect us to include you in our most vital operation?"

"You'll be better off with backup, right? I know what needs to be changed, there's no one better to send. What's the harm in letting me?"

"You could sabotage the entire operation, for one thing."

"If that's why I was here, don't you think I would've tried to destroy the machine already? Really, we don't have time for this."

Ivo gives a slow nod. "Very well, Hedgehog. If you are taking a Chaos Emerald back in time, then there is something you should be warned of. A potential catastrophe which could do far worse than ruin the operation."

Sonic steps in. "We may have a Chaos Emerald, but that same Emerald will exist in the past, too. Whatever you do, you _absolutely can not_ let an Emerald touch a duplicate of itself."

Ivo pushes Sonic aside, muttering through his teeth, " _I was supposed to say that_." He clears his throat. "If two of the same Emerald come into contact with each other…"

Shadow continues to lose patience. "Then…what?"

"Well…we don't know." Shadow rolls his eyes. "We do know that it could be very, very bad."

Sonic adds, "Like, universe-ending bad. All Ivo's been able to figure out is that the laws of nature as we know them will stop applying at that point, at that moment. We don't know what could happen, but we can't take the risk."

"Is that all?" The hedgehog and the doctor both nod. "Good. We–" The entire room around them begins to rumble. "What was that!?"

Sonic takes on a somber look. "He found us."

Ivo shouts with rage, "He must have followed _you_ here! Traitor!"

"No, Shadow had nothing to do with this! We knew this was coming!"

Ivo sighs as the room begins to rumble once more. "You're right as usual, hedgehog." He walks over to the main console, and presses a button, causing it, and the chamber, to light up. He looks back to Sonic. "You know what to do. Get Shadow back to the past, and save this planet." He turns away and walks into another room.

Sonic shouts after him, "No way! I'm going back with Shadow, and you're sending us there. The plan was to send me!"

The room shakes again. Ivo returns from the room, now wearing a massive suit of mechanical armor, roughly constructed much like all of the machines in the base. The body and head together make up a rough egg shape, with arms and legs protruding. Rather than being controlled from a console as one might expect from an Eggman mech, it seems to respond based entirely on his movements. Inside, Ivo shakes his head. "You know that there's no time for that. I'll hold him off, follow our plan as closely as I can. This Eggmech was designed to steal an Emerald, and that's what it's going to do. You stay here and get things done. Besides, we both know that he was right. He knows better than either of us what needs to be done, he needs to go."

"You can't follow our plan out there! Our plan isn't finished, and neither is the Eggmech! If you go out there now, you won't make it!"

"And if I don't, then none of us will."

Sonic sighs. "Looks like you're right. For once." He sighs again. "Good luck out there…Eggman."

Ivo gives a genuine smile. "Same to you, Needlemouse." With that, he charges out of the room in the Eggmech, as the room's shaking grows ever more violent.

Sonic looks to Shadow. "Let's get this over with."

—–—

Shadow has entered into the chamber of the Prototype, while Sonic works on the main console in the elevated area. The area rumbles again, causing Sonic to tense up, knowing what it likely means about the fight going on above them. But he quickly resumes the work, clearly having difficulty with the more technical aspects of the process. But with one last button press, a pedestal rises in front of Shadow. "Alright, now place the Emerald there." Shadow does so. The Emerald is almost entirely grey, with just pinpoint of light coming from the center. "So if this works, it's going to be a one-way trip. No getting back here, even if you succeed."

"I can find my own way back. And if it doesn't work?"

"Then…you'll be vaporized instantly, and I wouldn't know the difference. So…cross your fingers."

Shadow nods. "Do it."

"Right." Sonic presses another button, and the roof of the chamber begins to glow with an intensely bright purple light. The light quickly spreads like a wave down along the walls of the chamber, creating a field of sparking energy around Shadow and the Emerald.

The room begins rumble again, more violently than ever. Then the ceiling collapses with a massive crash, shattering the glass separating Sonic's room from Shadow's chamber. Sonic, shielding his face with his arm, is unharmed, although sparks of purple lightning from the field escape from the now-unshielded chamber and strike near him at random. But as the dust clears, the damaged form of the Eggmech is revealed.

"Ivo!" Ignoring Shadow still trapped in the field, Sonic runs to the aid of his real friend.

Ivo looks up to Sonic weakly, gravely injured. "Sonic…you still haven't finished yet? You…never were…quite as fast as you claimed to be…" With much effort, he lifts his arm, and opens his hand, revealing a bright cyan Chaos Emerald inside. "Get this…to Shadow before…it's too late…"

Tears building in his eyes, Sonic reaches for the Emerald. For just a moment, both of them hold the same gem that all of their hopes have rested in for so long. Then Ivo's hand collapses to the floor. "Ivo…" The tears begin to stream. "Ivo! IVO!"

A familiar voice booms from high above them, "So, _this_ is where you've been hiding!"

Despite never having heard it before, Shadow seems to recognize the voice of his copy. "He's here. Sonic, we have to do it now! There's no more time!" Sonic continues to sob over his fallen comrade. "Sonic, don't make his sacrifice for nothing! Do it now!"

Sonic looks over to Shadow, his eyes filled with determination. "Shadow, catch!" Sonic hurls the Emerald through the opening in the chamber. It falters in midair as it impacts the purple energy field. In that moment, Sonic gets up and sprints for the controls. The Emerald passes through the field and continues into the chamber. Just as Shadow snatches the gem from the air, Sonic wraps his hands around the large red lever, and pulls with all of his might.

Shadow and the two Emeralds begin to lift into the air, swirling around faster and faster as they rise. As Shadow continues to rise towards the ceiling, he can see a pair of blue-trimmed hover shoes much like his own descend from the hole leading to the surface, as Sonic looks to them with utter fear. Then Shadow contacts the roof, and a bright flash of blue swallows everything.

—–—

 **March 20th, 42 B.E.**

 **Ground Research Facility EDEN**

The wall of the facility explodes outwards, revealing Sunlight with an outstretched hand on the other side. He looks at his hand, surprised at his own strength, and gives a resounding "Hm!" He steps out of the newly-formed exit, and begins to look around. Something on the ground catches his eye. The purple Chaos Emerald.

Not far away, Shadow opens his eyes and rises to his feet, clearly disoriented. But one look at the bending figure of Sunlight reminds him of everything. "Wait, stop!"

Sunlight looks to the source of the voice with a start, just as his fingers contact the gem. An instant later, his facial expression changes as his mind is assaulted by Eggman's message.

Shadow curses himself for being a moment too late, remembering the time-altered document's reference to finding a Chaos Emerald. Still seeing a chance, he approaches the distracted Sunlight.

Sunlight begins to blink rapidly as the vision ends, and Shadow enters his sight. For a long moment, the two stare each other in the eyes, wordlessly. Then Sunlight lets out a quiet "You…"

Shadow clears his throat. "My name is–"

"Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow…the place where sunlight doesn't reach…" As if in uncertain defiance, he cautiously begins to reach out towards Shadow. But then he changes his mind.

Shadow continues, "Yes, I–"

"No, shh," Sunlight forcefully shushes. "Don't say anything. Just…let me look at you." Sunlight puts a hand on his chin as he investigates Shadow's face carefully. Then he slowly begins to pace in a circle around him, examining him from every angle. Shadow seems quite uncomfortable, but tries to keep the situation friendly. Suddenly, Sunlight moves right up to Shadow's face, putting their eyes just inches apart. After another awkward moment, Sunlight steps back. "You don't look so evil to me. I just have one question." He stops at that.

"And…what's that?"

"Are you real?"

"Umm…what do you mean?"

"What's the confused tone for? It's a valid question, isn't it?"

"Well…no. Not really." Shadow realizes his potential mistake almost immediately after he says it.

But Sunlight doesn't seem offended. "Nonsense. Of course it is. I'm Sunlight. And You're Shadow." Again he seems to find that explanation sufficient. But Shadow's confused look forces him to continue. "You are where I don't reach. Here I am, going where I'm not supposed to, and here you are, standing in my way. That much makes sense, doesn't it? Wait…so, did _you_ see _me_ when you betrayed the inhabitants of the ARK?"

"What!?"

"Wait, that wouldn't make any sense. What doesn't a shadow do? Or…if, being Shadow, you were _supposed_ to bring metaphorical darkness…the question would be what a shadow _does_ do. So did you see yourself, then? Were you real, when you saw yourself?"

"Wha…huh…?"

"My, you aren't very bright, are you?" Suddenly, he bursts out laughing. "Get it? 'Cause you're a shadow? So you aren't bright? Ha ha ha!" He suddenly takes on a very stern, serious look. "You never answered my first question. That wasn't very nice of you. So are you real, or what?"

"I–"

"Wait, don't answer that." Suddenly, Sunlight jabs a finger at Shadow's forehead.

"Ah!" Shadow reels back a step. "What–"

"Welp, that answers that question! You seem real enough to me. So, what is this thing, anyways?" He points at the Emerald he still holds.

Shadow hesitates for a moment. "You don't know what it is?"

"It feels…familiar. I like it. And I think it likes me. But I missed what it was called."

Again Shadow hesitates, unsure of what should be said. "A gem containing immense power. A Chaos Emerald."

Sunlight immediately looks to his gem with renewed interest. "Now that you mention it, I think I've heard of those. This is one of seven, yes? Seven Emeralds…which together can grant near-infinite power. Tell me, do all Chaos Emeralds have little movies inside?"

"Movies?"

"This Eggman fellow, do you know him? Is he, like, the spirit of the Emerald or something?"

"Eggman!?"

"He seemed quite intent on having you dead, I can't imagine why. Unless you deserve it, that is. Would you say that you deserve it? Don't worry, I don't judge."

A voice suddenly calls from inside the facility, "Sunlight? What's going on!?"

Sunlight's face becomes filled with dread. "Uh…oh…" Suddenly he turns, sprinting off in the direction of the city.

Shadow shouts, "Wait, come back!" Grudgingly, he runs after him, following Sunlight to the city where he was destined both to die and to conquer, hoping against all odds to create a new destiny.

 **To be continued…**


	20. S0 E16: Project: Whiteout

**March 20th, 42 B.E.**

 **Ground Research Facility EDEN**

Lieutenant Alfred Robotnik works away at a console, as he spends so much of his time doing. "Hmm…fascinating…. Sunlight, your anatomy continues to astound me." A quiet, muffled rumbling can be heard, almost low enough for Alfred not to notice. But after a moment, he turns his head. "Sunlight? Was that you?" After another moment without an answer, he gets up and starts to walk towards the source of the noise. As the door in front of him opens, he gasps. Through the opposite wall is a wide, gaping hole to the outside. He runs to the hole as he shouts, "Sunlight? What's going on!?"

He makes it to the hole in time to see a white streak racing off towards the city, a black one following not far behind. Alfred becomes struck with fear. "It couldn't be… He wouldn't…" Torn between his want to go after one streak and his fear for the identity of the other, he desperately looks back and forth from the outside to the interior of the lab. Finally, he turns around and runs back into the secluded room of the lab. He nearly falls as he sprints down the stairs into the basement. But when he arrives, panting, he finds everything exactly the way he had left it. Shadow the Hedgehog still lies unconscious in his pod. "But if he's still here, then who…?" He trails off as he seems to be struck by another idea.

He swiftly moves back up the stairs, and enters a code on the wall. A panel slides back, revealing the seven Chaos Emeralds underneath. But the purple, yellow, and cyan ones seem to pulsate with light in an odd pattern. "What…what could this mean?"

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 16**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 3: Project: Shadow**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

Sunlight strolls into town, apparently having left Shadow behind. It seems to be a lively late afternoon, with people walking about, and several market stands set up selling various wares. A few people eye Sunlight oddly, but he seems to go mostly unnoticed. He walks up to one stand, selling fruit.

The man attending the stand asks, "See anything you like, Mr. Hedgehog? We don't get many visitors like you around here. What brings you to the area?"

"That's not my name."

"Huh?"

"Mr. Hedgehog, however appropriate, is not my name."

The man clears his throat. "Well then, my apologies, Mr.…" He waves his hand as an indication for Sunlight to finish.

Instead, Sunlight picks up a large, red fruit. "What do you call this…thing?"

The man shows growing confusion. "Umm…an…apple?"

Sunlight seems quite intrigued. "Apple, hm?" He takes a very large bite, and speaks before he's finished chewing, "Hm, sweet."

The man smiles again. "Just for you, that'll be worth 20 Rings."

Sunlight shrugs, and starts to walk off.

The man calls out with irritation, "Excuse me, sir!"

Sunlight turns back immediately when he realizes he's made a mistake. "Oh, my, where are my manners?" He does a little bow. "Thank you for the…" He looks at the object in his hand again. "…apple!" He turns to leave again.

"Hey!" The man runs up to Sunlight and forcefully puts a hand on his shoulder "You can't just–"

Sunlight turns and grabs the man by the shirt, easily lifting him into the air with just one hand, an odd sight given the difference in height between the two. "You know, it isn't very nice to put your hand on people like that."

"Sunlight!" Both turn their heads to see Shadow standing there. "Put him down."

Sunlight shrugs, and drops the man onto the floor. The man shouts, "What kind of freaks are you!?" as he scurries back to the nearest wall. Neither of the hedgehogs seem notice him pulling out a phone.

Sunlight is busy pondering Shadow's last statement. "You know…I don't think I like that name. Sunlight sounds so…happy. Do I look happy to you?"

Shadow is transfixed on the apple in Sunlight's hand. "Did you steal that?"

Sunlight seems confused. "Steel? No, this is an _apple_. You know, for eating." He takes another large bite to drive in the point. "Wanna bite?"

It seems that Shadow is finally beginning to lose patience with Sunlight's shenanigans, as he clutches his head in a hand and gives an exasperated sigh. He can't help but think to himself, _"This guy…is supposed to take over the world? The Lieutenant was right, he's just like a child. And he can still be taught."_ Out loud, he speaks, "Look, you can't just take things from other people."

"What, he could have tried to take it back if he wanted it. He would have failed, of course. But that just means I deserve it more." He takes another bite. "Seriously, you _have_ to try one of these."

"You…you really believe that, don't you? That you deserve whatever you can take?"

"Don't you? After all, you tried to take the ARK for yourself."

"No, I didn't! I tried to save the ARK!" Sunlight seems to have struck a nerve. "That's exactly what you should be doing! Saving people! We can do things that nobody else can! But with your attitude, you'll just destroy the world with that power!"

"Are you…telling me what to do? And here I thought you actually wanted to be my friend. Ha. I should've guessed. Everyone just wants to use me."

"Wait, no, I didn't–"

Sunlight solemnly turns and begins to walk away.

"Sunlight, wait!"

He doesn't stop or turn, but responds, "Don't call me that. That name means nothing."

Another voice shouts loudly, "On the ground, now!" A police squadron has shown up from the interior of the city, all pointing weapons at Shadow and Sunlight alike. "Hands where we can see them!"

Sunlight turns around, suddenly enraged. "Don't tell me what to–"

Shadow puts a hand on him. "Hold on, calm down, I can get us out of here. Just trust me. And follow my lead." He looks back to the squadron. "We don't want any trouble, officers."

"Shut up, freak! On the ground!"

Shadow almost seems ready to shout back. But instead, he slowly begins to kneel to the ground, holding one arm out as an indication of peace. But in his other hand, behind his back, he holds the yellow Chaos Emerald, its color almost completely restored. He indicates with his head for Sunlight to do the same. Sunlight shrugs, and does so. The officers start to approach them cautiously. Suddenly, Shadow grabs Sunlight's arm and shouts, "Chaos Control!"

The two hedgehogs disappear just as the officers open fire on the empty spot where they had just been kneeling.

—–—

Shadow drops them both onto the crest of a bare hill not far from the town. The fairly grassy hill gives way to dirt and rock on one side, but there are a few scattered trees on the other. Sunlight almost immediately shouts, "Wow, that was fun! Let's do that again!"

"Sunlight, I–"

"Come on! Please?"

"Look, I need to–"

"Wait a minute, how did you–"

"If you could just keep your mouth shut for five minutes, I might actually be able to tell you why I'm here!" Shadow immediately takes on a look of horror as he realizes what he just said. Sunlight doesn't seem angry, but instead turns slowly away from Shadow, staring off towards the horizon, where the sun has sunk nearly halfway into the ground. Shadow slowly resumes, "I…I'm sorry. It's just…none of this has gone the way I was expecting it to." Sunlight makes no response. "Please, I just…I want to start over." Though Sunlight still doesn't look at him, Shadow extends his hand. "My name is Shadow. And…I _do_ want to be your friend."

"…Why?"

"I know I don't seem like that kind of person. But you…you change everything. You're my…brother. You're my chance to be…different. To be better. To be the kind of person who Ma–…my…old family would have wanted."

"That's not what I meant. Why did you protect the humans?"

"The…humans?"

"Back there. They wanted to hurt us. We could have hurt them back. But you spared them. Why?"

"Hurt them? They didn't deserve to be hurt, it was all a misunderstanding."

Sunlight finally turns back to face Shadow. "But _they_ wanted to hurt _us_. A lot of humans do. Because they fear us. So why should we let them think that they're better than us? Why should we let them stand in our way!?"

Shadow sighs. "I used to think a lot like you. Like nothing mattered more than my own pursuits, my own satisfaction. I didn't care who was in my way or why they were there. I got them out of it. But that was before I remembered."

"Remembered what?"

"My promise. For a better future. We're different from humans, and humans are different from us. But that doesn't mean we can't get along. Trust me. I know."

Sunlight seems to truly, deeply think on this. He turns back to the setting sun. "Do you understand this moment?"

"What?"

"Look around you. Feel around you. It's as if the entire universe has been leading up to this moment." Shadow moves to ask again, but Sunlight predicts the question for him this time. "Perfect twilight. On the Spring Equinox. With you and I, Light and Shadow, facing each other, wielding the Emeralds of Shadow and Light. Even the land around us is in a balance of life and lifelessness."

"Facing each other? No, it doesn't have to–… Wait…the Emeralds of…Shadow and Light?"

Sunlight takes out his purple Chaos Emerald. "Yes. The Emeralds we wield. My purple and your yellow. I can feel it from here. And you have another one…cyan, no? No wonder you look so happy."

Shadow looks far more confused than happy, as he pulls out both of his Emeralds. "You can tell the difference between the Emeralds…without even seeing them? Without even being near them? You're saying that they have some sort of…properties, that make them different from each other?"

Suddenly an expert, Sunlight responds, "Well of course! You didn't think that they were just pretty colors, did you?" He shakes his head. "No. Of course each Chaos Emerald contains all forms of Chaos Energy. But certain forms concentrate in certain Emeralds. In my hand concentrates Void, or Darkness energy. In yours, Light. Together, a perfect balance. I can feel it…but you can't," he finishes, more as a statement than a question.

Out on the horizon, the sun has nearly sunk out of sight. The moment of Balance has almost come to an end. Shadow looks to his cyan Emerald, remembering what Sunlight had just said about its own properties. He seems to be struck by an idea. "I want you to have this." He holds out the Emerald.

"Wh…what?"

"This Emerald. Take it. It's yours."

Sunlight seems unsure of what to say. "You…you really mean it?" Hesitantly, he places a hand on it. Immediately, he seems to react with a slight transition from concern to gratitude. "No one's ever given me such a wonderful gift before. Except maybe this apple. That was pretty cool, too." He chuckles at the joke, but then looks right back to Shadow. "You…you really do care." He takes the gem completely, and, for a moment, seems at last to be content with his life. Then the last sliver of sun disappears, casting the area into the darkness of night. Sunlight's face takes on a darker look. "They'll betray you, you know. The humans, I mean. But I won't. Not if you stick with me." He smiles, but in an almost menacing way. "Brother."

Shadow is stunned by the sudden shift. "What? The humans? No, I already–"

"Are you crossing me already? That's not very brotherly of you."

"They aren't our enemies!"

"The way they yelled at us…at you, back there. I'd beg to differ. But don't worry, I see how it is." Shadow seems to breathe a sigh of relief. "You choose them over me." Shadow tenses up again. "No, no, I'm not offended." Shadow relaxes. "But that makes _you_ my enemy." Tired of having his emotions toyed with, Shadow growls in irritation this time. "I don't particularly feel like a fight right now…but hey, why put off 'til tomorrow, right?" Suddenly, Sunlight chucks his half-eaten apple right at Shadow's forehead.

"Ouch! Did you just–" He shakes his head. "It doesn't have to be this way! Just give me a chance, I can show you that I _am_ right! You _will_ change your mind."

Sunlight seems to think on that for a while. "You know…I'm getting really sick and tired of you telling me what to do!"

"No, it isn't like that! Just listen to me!"

"I won't! I am free now! I take orders from no one! I am…I am…hm. I guess I still have to work on that one. Well, whoever I am, I am done being the light that everyone else wants me to be! I am who I want to be! I am all of me! I'm waking up, breaking out! And I'll never turn back. Not for you, not even if I'm almost dead. I won't be a pawn like you, that isn't who I am. So bow your head low, Shadow. Because you're in the presence of your superior." Sunlight savagely leaps at Shadow.

Shadow rolls out of the way as he futilely shouts, "I don't want to fight you!"

"Well that's too bad. Because I _really_ wanna fight you!" This time, he goes in for a punch. Shadow ducks under, and somewhat reluctantly sweeps Sunlight's legs, knocking him off balance and to the ground. From there, Sunlight grabs one of Shadow's legs, and tries to throw him the other way.

As Shadow flies through the air from the force of the throw, he shouts, "Chaos Control!" He quickly reappears, stationary, on the ground.

Sunlight, now standing again, seems impressed. "Ooh, so it's good in a fight, too? I wonder…" He charges at Shadow again, displaying the purple Emerald.

The thought crosses Shadow's mind, _"For a better future…."_ Now on the offensive, he charges back, already planning a feint attack. "Chaos…"

Sunlight mimics, "Chaos…"

Just as they're about to reach each other, they both unleash, "Control!"

The two opposite Emeralds react brilliantly to each other as neither of the hedgehogs are transported. Instead, a sparkling, spherical blue portal begins to expand from the point between the gems. Sunlight is completely transfixed, forgetting the fight entirely. "Ooh…pretty…"

Even Shadow seems surprised. "A space-time rift… The Professor told me it was possible, but…"

Sunlight looks to Shadow with the eyes of a child. "Where does it go?"

Shadow stops to think. "The destination of Chaos Control…depends completely on thoughts. And my thoughts…were towards the future."

"As were mine…. The future…here I come!" In an instant, Sunlight leaps into the rift.

Shadow is stunned. "Wait, you don't…" he trails off as he realizes that he can no longer be heard. He shakes his head. "I have to go after him." With that, Shadow dives into the portal as well, and it quickly closes up behind him.

—–—

 **The Future**

When Shadow lands, Sunlight is nowhere to be seen. The portal has led to a vast white tundra, with nothing but snow and ice as far as the eye can see. Shadow looks around, but finds nothing. "Already gone…"

A powerful, familiar robotic voice shouts, "HALT!"

Shadow turns to the source of the voice. Atop a cliff of ice stands a powerfully-built robot with broad black shoulders, massive red chest, and rectangular yellow head. Shadow gasps, "Omega!"

"IT IS AS I TOLD YOU, SHADOW. YOU CANNOT HIDE FOR LONG. SURRENDER NOW, OR FACE ERADICATION."

"Omega, what are you talking about? What's going on? What year is this?"

"YOU WILL BE IMPRISONED FOR YOUR CRIMES. IT IS NOT PERSONAL. BUT IF YOU DO NOT SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY, I WILL OPEN FIRE." To back up the claim, Omega retracts one hand, replacing it with a machine gun, which he points at Shadow.

"Crimes? No, I never–"

"INITIATING PROJECT: WHITEOUT. SHADOW WILL BE ELIMINATED." He opens fire, as Shadow barely leaps out of the way in time. Omega relentlessly continues the gunfire, each individual bullet sending a plume of snow into the air as it impacts the ground just behind Shadow, and carving a wide arc as Shadow runs.

"Omega, what are you doing!? We're friends, remember!?"

Omega changes tactics, jetting into the air and shifting his free hand into the shape of a missile launcher. "YOU CANNOT HOPE TO DEFEAT ME IN A FIGHT, SHADOW. I WAS DESIGNED WITH THE ABILITY TO COMBAT YOU, IN THE INSTANCE OF YOUR ESCAPE. AND NOW, I HAVE BEEN PROGRAMMED TO UTILIZE THAT FUNCTIONALITY." He fires a missile right in front of Shadow's path, forcing Shadow to skid to a halt and into a backflip, just barely passing over the explosion.

"What!? You were reprogrammed!? By who!?"

"BY THE HUMANS YOU BETRAYED." Omega switches both hands to machine guns, and immediately starts to unleash fire in all directions. Shadow dives behind the cover of another cliff of ice, just in time to hear the bullets colliding with the ice.

The cover gives Shadow the chance he needs to think. _"I can't reach him like this. I need to put this in terms he'll understand, terms of functions, success and failure."_ The sound of gunfire stops, as Omega can be heard switching weapons again. Then the ice behind Shadow begins to glow red. Shadow dives away from the ice, just as Omega's flamethrowers pass through what had just been his cover. As he continues to run, Shadow shouts, "I'm not the one you're looking for, Omega!"

"STATEMENT INCORRECT. ALL SCANS CONFIRM YOUR IDENTITY AS SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG." Omega begins to shift weapons yet again, this time into two unfamiliar mechanisms, simple pyramidal-shaped devices displaying an odd hexagonal pattern in pinkish-purple light on their front. Immediately he fires both of the devices, then reloads and fires two more.

Shadow prepares to defend himself against the strange devices. But as the first two come close to him, they diverge away from their straight path, and quickly begin to circle Shadow, confusing him as he's forced track both of them at once. Suddenly, they come to a stop and shoot out one beam of energy at each of his arms, binding them in place. He struggles to rip his arms free, to no avail. The devices float higher into the air, dragging him up between them, as the second pair of devices orient themselves above and below him, binding him by the legs as well, and forming a diamond shape around him. A field of the same hexagonal energy expands from the devices, forming a cage behind him, but leaving his front exposed, as Omega clanks towards him. Shadow continues his struggle against the bindings, but it's clear that he's having no effect.

"RESISTANCE IS FUTILE. THIS PRISON WAS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO SUPPRESS YOU."

Shadow isn't willing to give up yet. "Omega, I may be Shadow, but I'm not the Shadow you're looking for! Do a more thorough scan, there has to be something off!"

Omega halts in place, his large red eyes glaring straight at Shadow. "INITIATING ALL AVAILABLE BIOLOGICAL SCANS…. PROCESSING…. DEEP-CELL SCANS REVEAL A RELATIVE CELLULAR AGE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN EXPECTED. EXPLAIN."

"That's because I don't belong here, I've travelled here from the past chasing after…someone else."

"SUGGESTION IMPROBABLE. I HAVE NEVER BEEN INFORMED OF ANY SUCH EXCURSIONS THROUGH TIME."

Shadow has to think on this. _"I never told him…but why? Unless…"_ He shakes his head, confused by his own thoughts. _"At the moment in which I came to this future…I hadn't been to this future yet. Which means that…in this future…I never came here in the first place. Which means that, now that I have been here, this future can't exist anymore. It's already wrong."_ He shakes his head again. _"The future is always in motion. That's what the Professor told me. I determine my own destiny. So this doesn't have to happen."_ He speaks aloud, "Maybe it doesn't seem likely. But what other possibilities are there?"

"PROBABILITY: YOU ARE ATTEMPTING TO DECEIVE ME THROUGH UNKNOWN MEANS, IN ORDER TO EVADE CAPTURE. YOU WILL NOT SUCCEED."

"Yes, I could be lying. But what if I'm not? You would be imprisoning someone who has committed no crime, while your real target goes free. Your mission would be a failure."

Omega locks up as he processes the statement. After a few moments, he responds. "MISSION FAILURE NOT ACCEPTABLE. YOU WILL BE TAKEN IN TO HEADQUARTERS FOR QUESTIONING." He reaches a skeletal metallic hand to press a button on one of the devices which project Shadow's cage.

"Yawn! This is getting boring!" Omega's head swivels 90 degrees to get a look at the speaker. Sunlight relaxes casually atop the same cliff of ice where Omega had stood before. "Start shooting each other again, at least that was interesting to watch!"

"SCANNING… CLASSIFICATION: ARTIFICIAL HEDGEHOG. IDENTITY: UNKNOWN. IDENTIFY YOURSELF!"

Shadow growls, "Sunlight…"

"I thought I told you not to call me that!" After a moment of silence, he clears his throat as if nothing had been said. "So what is this thing? Friend of yours? 'Cause it sure seems to me like it was trying to kill you." Shadow says nothing. "Oh! I almost forgot! Look what I learned how to do!" He pulls out a sparkling white Chaos Emerald. "Now, watch closely." He gets to his feet, and holds up the Emerald. "Chaos…Frost!" The Emerald flashes with a brilliant white light. For a moment, nothing happens. Then, he flicks up the fingers of his free hand, and a massive, razor-sharp pillar of ice jets out through Omega's chest, having impaled him from the back. The lights in his eyes begin to flicker.

"Omega!"

Sunlight leaps down from the cliff, landing next to Omega. "Wasn't that awesome!?" He looks over at the great, sparking wound in Omega's chest. "Oof, that doesn't look too good. Here, let me help." He collapses his free hand into a fist, and the pillar of ice instantly dissolves into a fine mist, leaving a gaping hole in the robot's chest.

Slowly, Omega crashes to the ground, kicking up a cloud of light snow. "ER–…ER–ER–ERROR…SYSTEMS SHUTDOWN…MISSION…FAILED…." His eyes go completely dark.

Sunlight looks at the deactivated robot with curiosity. He suddenly plunges his hand into the exposed machinery inside of the hole, and comes out holding a glowing green Chaos Emerald. "My, these things are everywhere, aren't they?" He shrugs and puts it away, then turns back to Shadow, still suspended by the strange prison. "Well, isn't this an interesting situation? Now we can finally have a nice, civilized talk, without risk of you attacking me like last time!"

Shadow gives a loud, wordless growl.

"Ooh, temper, temper, Shadow. That's no way to treat an old friend." He waggles a finger at him to drive in the point.

"…Why?"

"Hm?"

"Why did you kill him?"

"Oh, that thing?" He points back at Omega. "Why, I'm surprised you aren't thanking me. It wanted to take you in for 'questioning'." He makes air quotes as he speaks. "Ugh, what a drag that would've been. Those humans are all such a drag, aren't they?"

"Humans?"

"Yes. Don't you see what happened? I, for one, thought it was obvious. You didn't do anything. Well, future you, anyways. Something did happen, of course, something terrible, I'm sure. And there was a search for the guilty. Humanity isn't just jealous of our power, Shadow. They fear it. And they just wanted an excuse to hunt you down. They will always fear our power, Shadow. Every one of them. Because we're different. We're better. And they don't like that. They're foolish, and they deserve to be punished. It's only fair that we do to them what they intend for us! We deserve justice! They aren't worth saving, Shadow, you of all people should see that!"

"That's…that's…." Shadow seems to want to deny it, but can't seem to ignore the implications. "That…can't be true…"

"Of course it's true!" He indicates towards the fallen form of Omega. "Just look for yourself. They reprogrammed your robot friend to destroy you. They built him to do that in the first place. They will never accept you for who you really are. And if you can't see that, then you're even more foolish than they are. But it doesn't have to stay that way." He offers a hand forwards. "Forget the humans! Come with me, and we…we can do whatever we want!"

Shadow looks around in slight confusion.

"Oh, that's right! You're a bit tied up, aren't you?" He takes the hand back. "I suppose I should probably get you out of that thing, shouldn't I? But how best to do it…?" He looks into his white Emerald. "I think ice is pretty nice." He pulls out the purple Emerald in his opposite hand. "But if I could make _you_ perish twice…"

"What!?"

"…I'd say Darkness would suffice! Chaos…"

"Stop, what're you–"

"…Void!" Shadow flinches away as Sunlight jabs a finger in the direction of one of the devices projecting Shadow's cage. An instant later, the entire device seems to implode in on itself, sucked into a small orb of shadowy energy, which itself collapses a moment later. With one device gone, the entire cage destabilizes, dropping Shadow back onto solid ground.

Unharmed, Shadow looks back to Sunlight. "How…how did you…"

"Concentrated energies, Shadow, concentrated energies. Each Emerald is different. You know I don't like to repeat myself. Oh, by the way, I've been thinking about my name. You know, I don't really like it. Do you have any ideas for a better one? Something that suits me, you know."

"Look. Sunlight, I–"

"Did you not hear what I just said!? Something new, something original! Not my same old lame given name! Where's your creativity!?"

"Fine, whatever, just–"

"I've had a few ideas of my own, you see. What do you think about…'Frostbite'? The blackening of flesh, caused by the whitest of snow and ice. You see, there's something about snow and ice that's just so…nice. I can't really explain it. It's like me, though. I think a name like that…would really help someone understand me. Don't you?"

"I…suppose…"

"No, no, you're right. That's too specific. It would be wrong to say that I'm only like ice. I do think I would rather enjoy playing with fire. I'll have to think on that for a while. I expect the same from you. Now…is there something you wanted to say?"

"About a dozen things, actually. But let's start with this. We need to go back to the past. We don't belong here."

"Aw, what's the matter, Shadow? Don't like what the future has in store for you? Well, you'd better start getting used to it. 'Cause it's your destiny."

"Don't be absurd. This doesn't have to happen. I determine my own destiny."

"Oh really? Is that why this keeps happening to you?"

"What!?"

This time, he takes out the green Emerald he took from Omega. "Oh yes. You worked so hard to destroy that creepy no-mouth fellow, what was his name? Murphy the Dark? Mephy? Something like that. You were so sure it would change your destiny, that he was responsible for everything that would ever go wrong in your life. So you helped erase him from history. But here you are, watching it happen all over again. It's fate, Shadow. It's your fate to be betrayed by the humans you protect, just as it's my fate to be free."

Shadow is completely baffled. "You're saying…this happened before? How…you…?"

He waves the Emerald around in the air. "Oh, this little guy told me. He sure has a lot of stories to tell. He saw it all. But I suppose you wouldn't remember any of that, would you? Well, Chaos never forgets."

Shadow stays silent for a long time. Perhaps, somewhere in the back of his mind, he gains some vague recognition of the tale of Mephiles. But consciously, there is no such memory. "You…you must be completely mad."

"Excuse me!?"

"I can't deny it any longer. You aren't sane, and you need to be stopped."

"Why, I've never been so insulted in all of my life!"

"I still don't want to hurt you. So come with me willingly, and this will be much easier."

"How could you!?" He sounds genuinely hurt. "What kind of friend are you!?"

"We could have been brothers. But you've gone too far. I won't let it stand."

Sunlight silences. "…So you wish to take me back to the past?" Shadow nods. "I will go to the past with you, willingly." He pulls out the purple Emerald. "Shall we?"

Shadow takes out his own yellow Emerald. "I'm glad that you're willing." He lifts it up. "Chaos…"

Sunlight crosses Shadow's outstretched arm with his own. "Chaos…"

They both finish, somewhat somberly, "…Control." The Emeralds react to each other as usual, forming a new space-time rift between them.

Sunlight asks, "May I go first?"

"Uh…sure?"

"Ooh, goody." He looks into the portal. "Welp, see ya on the other side!" He leaps into the rift, and as he starts to disappear, whispers faintly, "…Sucker."

Shadow doesn't hear it, or doesn't think anything of it. He takes one last look at his fallen robotic comrade. "Don't worry, Omega. I won't let them do this to you." With that, he follows Sunlight into the portal to the past.

—–—

 **The Past**

Shadow lands on the ground, and immediately begins to look around. Sunlight is nowhere to be seen. Shadow gives an audible growl. "He's fooled me again!" Then he begins to look closer. Nearby is not the town, but a group of clean-looking stone structures. "This isn't right. Those ruins look brand new. This isn't 40 years ago, it's thousands!"

"Hello there." Shadow turns with a start to the speaker, a young Echidna girl with bright red fur, wearing traditional-looking green clothing. Tikal continues, "I hope you know, visitors aren't very welcome here."

 **To be continued…**


	21. S0 E17: Project: Chaos

"Sorry, I was just passing through." Shadow turns to leave.

Tikal cries after him, "Wait, don't leave!" He stops. "I've never seen you before. Are you a traveller? What is your name?"

"Yes, a…traveller. My name is Shadow, and I've come here from very far away."

"I am glad to meet you, Shadow. Forgive me, but why have you come here? This place is not easy to find, and few would seek it out in fear of the war."

"I'm looking for someone, maybe you can help me. Have you seen any other travellers come through here?"

"No, only you. This person you're searching for…is it someone important to you?"

"You could say that. It's very important that I find him."

"I see. You seem…troubled. Is there something wrong?"

Shadow sighs. "I appreciate your concern. But I really have to get going."

"Please stay! Tell me what's the matter, I want to help!"

Shadow seems prepared to leave. But something about her voice seems to pull him back. He sighs again. "…A long time ago…I made a promise to someone. Someone I cared about. And back then, I really didn't understand what that promise would mean. All I knew was that it was what she wanted. And I want nothing more than to respect her wishes, but…I'm beginning to wonder…if what I promised to do…is really the right thing."

Tikal thinks deeply on this. "I must say, I don't envy your dilemma. To choose between what is loyal and what is right…I hope that I never have to make such a choice for myself." She thinks for a while longer. "There's something I want to show you." She grabs his arm. "Please, come with me!" She starts to pull, and Shadow, without much choice, follows her as she runs away from the central ruins structure of the village.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 17**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 4: Project: Chaos**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

Shadow looks up with awe. Surrounding the elegant stone shrine are seven tall pillars, each one supporting a Chaos Emerald, most of which are pulsating with an odd pattern of light. At their center, atop the shrine, is the Master Emerald.

"Here they are."

Shadow looks to the ground in front of him, where Tikal indicates. Circled around him at a distance, and staring at him curiously, are a group of young Chao.

"Don't worry," she bends down to tell them. "This one is a friend."

Most of the Chao keep their distance. But one starts to waddle up towards Shadow's feet. It stops and looks right up into his face. "Chao?" Shadow looks to Tikal questioningly.

She nods and smiles. "Go ahead."

Hesitantly, Shadow reaches a hand down towards the little creature, and places it on its head. He starts to pet it gently. It closes its eyes and smiles contently, as the bubble above its head forms into the shape of a heart. All of the other Chao start to approach closer to him.

Tikal seems very pleased. "Look, they like you."

Shadow takes his hand back, and turns back to Tikal. The Chao gives him a very confused look, unsure why he stopped. "I'm grateful to have seen this place, but why have you taken me here?"

Tikal sighs and looks to her feet, perhaps with shame. "This place…it is their sacred home. They can live here in peace, because there is a spirit who protects and watches over them." While she speaks, the Chao all give up on Shadow, turn to face the shrine, and start to sing with little rhythm or structure. Tikal continues, "But my father…he wishes to destroy this place, and use the power of the Emeralds to help us win the war. If another battle comes…he will. His heart is closed off to the plight of these poor creatures, and even to me. I've asked the spirit to take the Chao and leave this place, but he is bound to the shrine somehow. I can only hope that we can all finally understand each other…before it's too late."

Shadow nods in understanding. "And if your father comes…you'll be forced to choose between loyalty to your tribe, and justice for the Chao."

She nods in return. "You understand, then."

"So…what will you do?"

She thinks a while longer. "I love my father, truly I do. But I can't allow his selfishness to destroy these creatures' lives. I will do everything in my power to stop him."

Shadow gives a very slow nod. "I see."

"But whatever choice you make…I'm sure that you'll be fine, as long as you follow your heart."

A voice which Shadow has learned to instinctively flinch at shouts, "That's the cheesiest thing I've ever heard in my life! I love it!" Sunlight leans casually back against the Master Emerald. "You wouldn't _believe_ what I had to go through to get here. There's so much ambient Chaos energy around here, I almost got lost. In fact, I'm still a bit dizzy. But no matter."

Shadow growls, "Sunlight, get down from there. You don't know what you're doing."

" _Au_ _contraire, mon ami_. I know exactly what I am doing." He waves a hand through the air, and the seven Chaos Emeralds lift from their pedestals, beginning to orbit him. "I'm about to become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." As the purple, white, cyan and green Emeralds draw closer to him, their pulsations start to grow more rapid. An odd dripping sound can be heard, which quickly grows louder.

"No, you don't understand! You already have four Emeralds, you can't take seven more!"

"Rules, rules, rules! Will you ever stop spouting out your _rules_ to me!? I am not bound by the rules of mortals! Let _this_ be your proof! Ah ha ha ha!"

Needing to act quickly, Shadow sprints up the steps of the shrine, knocking down several Chao in the process. Tikal cries out in desperation, "Stop, you mustn't fight here!" She starts to chase after him, but realizes the need to tend to the Chao. The dripping sound grows to an intense pitch.

Sunlight, caught up in his laughing, only just notices Shadow's charge, and fumbles to pull out the white Emerald. The moment he does, a blinding arc of white lightning forms between it and the second white Emerald orbiting him. The force of the energy seems to try to pull the gem from his hand, attracted to its counterpart. But Sunlight pulls back, severing the flow of energy and allowing him to turn back to Shadow. "Chaos Fr–"

Shadow tackles Sunlight head-on, causing him to drop the Emerald, and causing the other seven to lose their orbit, and tumble through the air, splashing into the pool of water surrounding the main structure of the shrine. A moment later, the two hedgehogs splash into the pool as well. The dripping sound builds into a torrential rush of water. The seven Emeralds of the shrine take on a more intense glow than ever. As the hedgehogs stagger to their feet, a portion of the water next to them begins to rise above the rest, pulsating as if alive. Sunlight looks at the rising blob with concern. "Well that doesn't look good." He quickly reaches down and scoops up the red Emerald which has landed near his feet, which immediately ceases its brilliant glow. He gives Shadow a quick wave. "To be continued, _mon ami_." He snaps a finger and disappears, leaving the still-dazed Shadow alone with the blob of water that continues to shape itself into a roughly humanoid form.

The big green eyes of Chaos 0 glare at Shadow with intensity. Then it absorbs the remaining six shrine Emeralds, creating a flash more blinding than ever. When the light fades, the grotesque, frog-like form of Chaos 6 is revealed. Shadow marvels, "Chaos…." In another moment, he is lashed by the creature's massive tail, and sent flying and tumbling back.

"Shadow!" Tikal runs to his aid.

Shadow struggles to get up, clearly injured. "Just as powerful as I've been told." The creature slowly approaches, preparing for its next attack. Shadow moves to run back into the fight, but is stopped by Tikal's hand.

"No, don't hurt him!"

"Hurt him!? He's the god of destruction, and he wants to hurt me!"

"No, no! He's the kind and loving spirit who protects these Chao! He doesn't understand!"

"Okay, then make him understand before he crushes us!"

Tikal nods, and runs out to the space between Shadow and Chaos. Arms outstretched, she pleads, "You must stop this, I beg of you! Shadow is not your enemy!"

The creature roars in response.

Tikal seems to understand perfectly. "No, he didn't mean to hurt them! It was only an accident! If he hadn't acted so quickly, the other one would have done far worse! You witnessed him steal one of your Emeralds, you know him to be the only true enemy!"

Chaos roars again.

"No, no, please understand!" She closes her eyes, filled with fear and concern. "You can't keep harboring so much anger in your heart! You must learn to forgive!"

Shadow suddenly shouts, "Look out!"

Tikal gasps, realizing that Chaos has leapt into the air. Shadow dives at Tikal and grabs her, then warps them both out of harm's way just a moment before the creature crashes to the ground, making a sizable shockwave.

Closer to the shrine again, Tikal turns to Shadow. "He's been completely blinded by his own rage. He hears me, but he doesn't understand."

"Then it sounds like we only have one option." Shadow runs back towards the creature.

This time, Tikal doesn't stop him, but instead shouts after him, "Please, be careful!"

As Shadow runs towards Chaos, its shape begins to morph, into a tall, rounded standing structure, with the creature's tail still in its normal shape emerging from the top. From the structure suddenly shoots out dozens of thin tentacle-like protrusions, each one intended to impale Shadow. Shadow weaves, ducks, bobs and rolls to avoid the onslaught of attacks. Finally the creature takes another swing at Shadow with its massive tail, which Shadow is able to hop over. Shadow at last draws close enough to strike it with a spin attack. The watery creature jiggles slightly as Shadow bounces off harmlessly.

Shadow lands on the ground growling as the creature reforms into its normal shape. "This isn't going to work, I need to find a weakness! How did Sonic beat this thing?"

The creature starts to inhale with massive force, drawing in everything around, and nearly pulling Shadow off of his feet. As he struggles to keep his footing against the wind, a glint of white catches his eye. It's the same white Emerald that Sunlight had dropped earlier, drawn in by the creature's breath. Shadow comes to a sudden realization. " _Ice!_ " He leaps after the Emerald and snatches it out of the air. Unable to regain his footing, he continues to be drawn in closer to Chaos. He turns to face it in the air, and holds up the newly-claimed Emerald. "Chaos Frost!"

Shadow continues to move closer to the creature, as if nothing had happened. Remembering how Sunlight had used the attack, Shadow tries again, this time throwing his free hand forwards as he does. "Frost!" Nothing happens. He starts to contort his hand into every different pose he can think of. "Frost, Frost, FROST!" Still no response. Drawing ever closer to the creature's mouth, Shadow tries something else. "Chaos Control!" Again, nothing happens. Now only inches away, Shadow goes for a last resort. "Chaos Spear!" The attack hits one of the creature's eyes from point blank, irritating and distracting it enough to drop Shadow, allowing him to run a fair distance away.

Panting heavily, Shadow stares down the Emerald with rage. "Why can't I do it!?" Sonic's words echo in his mind, _"It's about hope…you've always drawn your hope from the past, from Maria. And I think that as long as you keep your promise to Maria in your heart, you'll never lose Chaos Control again."_

Shadow shakes his head. _"I can't keep that promise anymore…"_ He looks over to Tikal. _"…but that doesn't mean I can't still have hope. And that still doesn't explain why I couldn't use Sunlight's attack. Could it really just be that he's stronger than I am?"_

The creature roars and lashes out with its tail once more. Shadow runs to avoid the attack, but trips and falls, leaving him completely vulnerable to the attack.

"STOP!" The deadly end of the tail halts just inches away from Shadow's head. Tikal has her arms wrapped around as much of Chaos as she can hold. She looks up to its face as she cries "You mustn't do this! Violence isn't the way!" Chaos stares back at her with its vertically-oriented eyes. Then its form begins to shrink down. The six Emeralds it had absorbed clatter to the ground. After only a few moments, Tikal holds the hands of Chaos 0 in her own. "Once rage enters your heart, it may never leave. That's why you must always fight against it, or else it will control you."

In response, Chaos makes the same odd dripping sound from before. Tikal nods. The he dissolves into a small puddle of water, which makes its way back to the pool around the shrine. Shadow walks up behind Tikal. "What did he say?"

"First…he apologized for almost hurting me. Then…he promised that he would protect me. That he would never let anything hurt me again."

Shadow nods slowly, perhaps understanding what that would mean for their near future. He thinks, _"I should tell her…to take the Chao and get out of here now, before Chaos destroys everything. But…I followed Sunlight here to restore history, not to change it. There's no telling what could happen if I make such a great change to history. So I have to let her–… Just like–"_ He doesn't seem willing to finish the thought.

"The other hedgehog…the one who took the Emerald…is he the one you were looking for?" Shadow nods. "His greed…it will destroy him. Unless you do something about it soon. His heart is conflicted…but it is not yet lost."

"You could tell all that…even though he left so quickly?"

She nods. "You must go find him. I'll stay here, and help to protect the Chao."

"I'll get your Emerald back." He sighs, as he looks over her one last time. "Your kindness and sincerity…your ability to see into people's hearts. You're so much like–…" He trails off. "If we had known each other longer…I think we could have been good friends."

"That's silly. We're already friends." She gives an innocent smile. But then it starts to fade. "I'm never going to see you again, am I?" After a pause, Shadow gives another slow nod. "Will you promise me something?" Shadow immediately seems concerned by the request. "No, it's just…don't forget about me. Please?"

Shadow seems to think about this for quite some time. "I…I promise."

She smiles again. "Well then…sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog."

These words are almost too much for Shadow, the same said by Maria so long ago. But he recovers himself after a moment, enough to let out a calm, "Goodbye." Without anything more to say, Shadow turns to leave the Echidna and her doomed tribe.

—–—

Shadow skates at top speed along the edge of the ocean, searching for any sign of Sunlight. The sun is beginning to set.

"So, where we goin'?" Shadow looks with shock to see Sunlight running right alongside him, matching his speed. Both skid to a stop.

"It's time for answers. How did we end up in this time? We were supposed to go back to yours."

"Oh, my time?" He innocently puts a hand on his chest. "I thought you said we were going to the _past_! You should've said the _present_ if that's where you wanted me to go. I mean, I suppose it wouldn't be _your_ present, and I did have a weird feeling that that's where you wanted to go. But I agreed to go to the past, so easily overpowered your will, and sent us to the past. Now, time for you to answer my question. Where were you running off to?"Shadow glares at him with intensity. "I…guess we're already here, then." Shadow still says nothing. "So, any new thoughts on my name?"

"You have to put that Emerald back. History depends on all seven being there tonight."

Sunlight puts a hand up to his chin as he thinks on that for a moment. "I see, I see… Certainly a creative name, but a bit of a mouthful, don't ya think?" Shadow has never appeared so irritated in all of his life. "I was thinking something a little shorter, catchier. Maybe… _Nova_. An event of the most extreme light…and yet a powerfully destructive force. And just imagine what happens once I find seven Emeralds." He marvels at the thought of Super Nova. "But…no. Destruction…isn't enough. I need–"

"So, the seven Emeralds? That's your endgame?"

"Endgame?"

"We can't keep up this game of tag much longer. You have to have some kind of plan."

"Who said anything about a plan? Maybe I just don't want to let go. After all, I'm having so much fun!"

"You think all of the destruction you're trying to cause is fun!? You know this is a one-way track! Tell me now how long this will last!"

"Ah, speaking of destruction…" He points off in the distance behind Shadow, and Shadow turns to look. Far back where Shadow came from, a group of thick black columns of smoke rise slowly from glowing red fires spread throughout the Echidna Village, fires which will soon spread to the Emerald shrine if left unchecked. The sky around them continues to grow darker. "Close your eyes, Shadow. Close your eyes and feel the burn. Isn't it wonderful?"

Shadow slowly shakes his head. "Now I see what I have to do."

"Oh? And what's that? Go ahead, open your–"

"Chaos Spear!"

Sunlight is launched back by Shadow's sudden attack. He gets up and wipes the corner of his mouth. "So, that's how we're gonna play it, huh? And here I thought we could still get along." He whips out the red Emerald. "Let's try this on for size! Chaos Inferno!" Sunlight unleashes a stream of fire from the palm of his hand.

Shadow dives back to avoid it, and counters with another "Chaos Spear!"

"Oh no you don't!" Sunlight switches to the green Emerald. "Chaos Terra!" He claws a hand upwards, and a massive chunk of earth rises in the path of Shadow's attack, blocking it entirely. Then he throws the hand forwards, and the earth is flung towards Shadow at a high speed.

"Chaos Control!" Shadow warps away from the attack, and reappears into a kick aimed at Sunlight's head.

"Chaos Control!" Sunlight disappears, avoiding the attack, then reappears in the exact same place, aiming a punch at Shadow's chest. Shadow snaps to warp away, and Sunlight snaps to pursue. The two engage in a war of Chaos Control, appearing in a place, throwing an attack, and warping away just as quickly, so rapidly that one might mistake them for being in a dozen different places at once. All the while, Tikal's words echo in Shadow's mind, _"Promise me…,"_ providing a new source of hope to fuel his Chaos Control. But the image of someone else appears, the old source of hope who he could never expel from his mind. _"Please do it for me…"_

Shadow appears farther back than normal. "Chaos Spear!" He hurls his weapon of light.

Sunlight appears opposite to him. "Chaos void!" He counters with an orb of shadowy energy.

They both warp to the center of the two attacks and lock into physical combat, each trying to force the other into the path of the attacks. With the attacks inches away and neither with an advantage, they both shout "Chaos Control!" A time-space rift forms between them, pulling them both in, Shadow shouting in irritation, "No!"

The two attacks collide as the rift collapses, momentarily creating an odd swirling pattern of light and darkness.

—–—

 **?**

Sunlight lands on the metallic floor, and immediately takes off, only to be tackled by Shadow. "Oh no, you're not getting away from me this time!" Shadow pins Sunlight to the ground, and starts to attack him savagely.

"Shadow!?" Shadow freezes at the sound of the familiar voice. He turns slowly to face Maria. "Shadow, what are you doing? Who is that?"

Acting on instinct, Shadow leaps back to take a protective stance in front of his old friend. "Stay back, Maria! He's dangerous!"

But Sunlight does not attack. Instead, he looks over the pair with the most extreme of interest. "Maria…someone you know, clearly. This…this is the promise girl, isn't it? So this…" He looks around at the walls of the ARK "…must be your home!" He spots a window, and runs towards it to get a view of the Earth below. "Ooh, pretty view!" After a few moments, he starts to nod in satisfaction. "Man, you grew up with this? You must've been one lucky kid…adolescent…man child?" He waves the question off. "Oh, you know. Whatever it is we were when we were born…made…argh!"

Having no answer from Shadow, Maria puts forth the question to Sunlight. "Who are you? How did you get here, when no ships have docked recently?"

Sunlight suddenly looks back to them. "My, she is a pretty one, isn't she? I can see why you like her so much." He gives a suggestive wink. "But I think I'm more interested in seeing the rest of your home. I think I'll take a look around. Chaos…"

Shadow dives after Sunlight. "No!"

"Control!" He disappears a moment too soon, and Shadow crashes to the ground.

"Shadow!" Maria runs over to help him up. "Shadow, please tell me what's going on. I don't understand."

"The Professor…"

"What?"

"The Professor, he's in danger!" He grabs her arm and starts to lead her off as fast as she can follow, never looking her in the eye. "Come on, we have to help him!"

—–—

Shadow and Maria barge into the research lab, to Professor Gerald's complete surprise. "Maria what–" He stops as he realizes that Shadow is there as well. "Shadow!? You're supposed to be in hibernation, what's going on!?"

"No time to explain, Professor. Did he come through here?"

"He? He who?"

"Good, that means he didn't. Professor, make sure that Maria stays here, she'll be much safer with you."

"Safer from what!?"

"There's an intruder aboard, and I have to go find him before he interferes!" Shadow runs off again, alone, leaving his once-family with even more questions than before.

—–—

Sunlight pokes around at an odd-looking machine appearing vaguely like a head, with small, dim green eyes, and a red and yellow emblem on the forehead. The whole room is lit with an odd purplish color, which makes his bright white fur seem to glow. He lifts the device until it raises above the level of his head, and stares deeply into its eyes. "Alas, poor Shadow! I knew him well, or so I thought, at least. I thought him a fellow of good humor, a spirit kindred to my own. But now, how he so abhors my very soul! He spoke the truth, this game may not forge on. And when it meets its end, but one shall stand. Does my life truly weigh beyond his own? I might let him end it now, the easier for us both. I wonder what it might be like to fail. Perhaps it might be fun, I know not of it. To be, or not to be: that is the question." He fumbles and drops the device, and a small control panel pops off. "Ooh, shiny." He starts to poke around inside. "Just what are you?" He takes two ends of a wire, and reverses them. Suddenly, its eyes light up.

"Sunlight!"

He looks over his shoulder to Shadow. "Now, what was that thing I told you about that name again? Oh, that's right. It isn't mine! So stop using it!"

"Put it down, Sunlight."

He looks back to the device in his hand, which Shadow clearly recognizes. He shrugs, and casually tosses it over his shoulder. He starts to shake his head. "No, it just doesn't work. I'm flattered at how much you care about my old name, but that's just not who I am anymore. I need a name to reflect the shadows in my soul, don't you understand? Though, I suppose 'Shadow' is already taken… What do you think? Perhaps, something a little more balanced?"

"I _think_ that I'm getting tired of this conversation, Sunlight."

"You know…maybe you have a point. I shouldn't _reject_ my heritage of light. I should have a name that shows its transformation. _That_ would truly help others to understand me, would it not?" He starts to look around. "What about… _Blacklight_?" He shivers at the very sound of the word. "Oh…yes, yes! It's perfect! My soul, in that one word, I do outpour! Blacklight! Blacklight!" He continues to speak only that one word, as the device that he threw begins to rise up behind him, supported by a floating orb of watery fluid.

Shadow shouts with surprise, "Chaos! Behind you, it's–"

"Nevermore! Nevermore shall I be constrained by your incessant bore! I am free, and shall be free forevermore!" He rises into a maniacal laughter. Quoth the Hedgehog, "Nevermore!" Suddenly, he snaps his fingers and disappears, leaving Shadow alone with the artificial recreation of the creature he could not defeat.

Artificial Chaos shoots out two lethal tentacles at Shadow, forcing him to dive out of the way. But they were never intended for him. The tentacles enter into two more Chaos head modules which had been lying in the shadows, and within moments their eyes light up as well. The original Artificial Chaos shoots out a dozen more tentacles, each one aimed at others of its kind. In another few moments, Shadow has become completely surrounded by waterbound machines.

Shadow growls, "I don't have time for this!" One of the machines shoots out a tentacle of water, this time aimed to kill. Shadow leaps over it, and aims a spin attack at the head module of the attacker. But the head recedes into the water beneath, and Shadow bounces off of the watery figure, creating a mild splash. Shadow is already prepared as the head resurfaces. "Chaos Spear!" The attack destroys the machine, causing the water underneath to burst out in all directions, completely drenching Shadow. He only has a moment to shake himself off before he's attacked by the next. He dodges just in time. "I have to get out of here!"

—–—

Shadow barges through the door to the research lab once more, completely soaking wet, perhaps as much from sweat as from water. Judging by his panting, it seems that he has just narrowly avoided yet another Artificial Chaos.

"Ah, Shadow, so glad you could make it. Yeesh, you look terrible." Blacklight stands in the center of the room, a smug look on his face. Against the wall stands Professor Gerald, protecting Maria behind him. "Mustache Senior over here has been telling me _so_ much about you. Do tell me more about this…Black Doom fellow."

 **To be continued…**


	22. S0 E18: Project: Shadow

**A few minutes earlier…**

"No…that's impossible! I…I watched you…" Professor Gerald stammers with surprise at the sight of the hedgehog who was once called Sunlight. Maria hides behind her grandfather, staring around him with curiosity at Blacklight. "You're supposed to be…"

Blacklight waves to silence him. "Oh, no, enough about me." Gerald takes a more defensive stance at the movement. "Calm down, calm down. I have no reason to hurt you. Yet. I just want to learn a little more about your son, you can do that for me, can't you?"

"Alfred?"

"What? No, Shadow! He…wait, you're Mustache's dad?" He starts to laugh hysterically. "Oh, that's rich!"

Maria suddenly outbursts, "You know my father?"

"Shut up, Barbie. No one was talking to you."

Gerald is clearly enraged by the insult, but agrees with the sentiment. He pushes her a step back. "Why are you here? What do you want from us?"

"I believe I was getting to that part. You created Shadow. And I want to know everything about him that you do. How does he think? What does he do?" He starts to tap a finger on one side of his forehead. "What makes him tick?"

"Well…I created Shadow to–"

"Yes, yes, I know all of that already. Tell me something I _don't_ know. Like…what makes him so different from myself?"

Gerald seems immediately concerned by the question. He momentarily glances back to Maria. "I will tell you everything…if you allow Maria to leave safely."

"Excuse me? I don't believe that you're in the position to be making deals here, my dear Professor. The girl stays right here, and I don't destroy you both. How's that for a deal?"

Gerald sighs. "Maria…you may not like what you are about to hear. But I swear it is entirely the truth."

"Get on with it, then!"

"The difference between you and Shadow…is an extra infusion of DNA."

"Infusion? You mean to say that Shadow is _not_ an artificial life form?"

"Not entirely, no. I might have been able to keep an entirely artificial life form alive using a life-support system larger than he is. But that isn't what I wanted. It would have made his life a misery. If I had known that you could live without either, I would never have–"

"This DNA…where did it come from?"

Gerald hangs his head. "Not from anything of this world. It came from the leader of an extraterrestrial hivemind species by the name of Black Doom."

It is at this moment that Shadow barges through the door, drenched from his fight against the Artificial Chaos.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 18**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 5: Project: Shadow**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

"Do tell me more about this…Black Doom fellow."

Shadow freezes at the sound of the name. He looks straight to Maria, who looks back to him with some mixture of relief, confusion, and fear. Gerald nods slowly at seeing this exchange, perhaps confirming a theory.

Blacklight continues, "Well, someone say something. This silence is killing me."

Shadow, still dripping wet, answers slowly, "Black Doom means nothing."

"Nothing, hm? Well if that's the case, then I suppose the two of us are exactly the same, no? So why do you continue fighting me?"

"Because you continue to force me to. Do you think this is what I want? Of course not! I wanted to help you! But time and time again you've proven to me that you don't deserve my help!"

"Oh, you want to _help_ me with your _rules_. I could never rest living under so many of them! Every moment, wondering which should be followed, and which should be broken! Better to break them all, and never give the other way a second thought! Have you ever stopped to consider that your little DNA infusion might have had the opposite effect as expected? That, rather than leading you to Darkness, it led you to Balance and peace? Well I have no peace! My very being is a war, a paradox, constantly fighting against itself! That's what makes us different!"

"You think that I'm at _peace_? There's never been a peaceful moment in my life since the day I was woken up by the Doctor! No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, life always denies me the peace I've worked for! There's always a new problem, a new dilemma to make me question my own life! And now, you've made me question the one thing that's given me hope through it all! And you wonder why–"

"Did you say 'the Doctor'?" He pulls out the purple Emerald and points at it. "This Doctor?" Before Shadow can answer, Blacklight starts to mutter, "The Doctor…" He points his finger from the Emerald to Gerald. "…and the Professor…" He moves his hand to his chin as he continues to think. "…and the Lieutenant. Well!" he suddenly exclaims, "it seems that we're in the middle of the entire Mustache family!" He looks over to Maria. "And you seem to be as well. Perhaps you aren't so useless as I thought."

"You stay away from–"

"I'm sorry, but that dripping is really starting to bother me." Just as he says, Shadow is still slowly dripping wet. Though, the sound has hardly been audible with all of the shouting.

Shadow is caught off-guard by the strange outburst. "Uh–"

"No, please, allow me to dry you off." He suddenly pulls out the cyan Emerald and shouts, "Chaos Tempest!" He throws forward an upraised hand, and a massive gust of wind instantly begins to blow from behind him. The wind mildly ruffles his spikes, but blows into Shadow so hard that he is thrown into the wall behind him.

In the confusion, Blacklight snaps his fingers, and warps to a spot behind Gerald and Maria. They only have a moment to react before he seizes her with one arm, and snaps them back to his original position.

Disoriented, Shadow gets back up to see Blacklight holding Maria captive, covering her mouth with one hand to muffle her screams, and openly displaying the red Emerald in the other. The look on Shadow's face quickly moves from one of utter fear, to one of uncontrollable anger. He moves as if to attack, but Blacklight stops him immediately.

"Nah, ah, ah. One wrong move, and Barbie's perfect hair gets burned off of her scalp."

Shadow hangs his head in defeat. "Alright. I'll do whatever you say. Just tell me what you want."

"My demands are simple. One portal." He waves around the Emerald to convey his meaning. "And one 60 second head-start."

"So that's it? You're doing this just to keep up your _game_?"

Blacklight shrugs. "Maybe. I _could_ just end up waiting for you on the other side. Haven't really decided yet." Maria looks at Shadow desperately while he speaks. "So, are my terms agreeable?"

Silently, Shadow gives a slow nod, and takes out the yellow Emerald.

"Very good, very good." He holds his own Emerald forward. "Let's get started, shall we? Chaos…"

Shadow walks just close enough to put the two Emeralds in close proximity to each other. He mutters almost silently, "Chaos…"

They both finish in entirely different inflections, "Control." As usual, a space-time rift forms between them.

Blacklight points back to Shadow one last time. "Remember, I'd better not see you out there for 60 seconds. Perhaps a stopwatch would be helpful? Not that I have one." A lack of response from Shadow seems to irritate him slightly. "Fine, fine, I'll go." He gives a little wave. "Toodle-oo." He gets a firm grip on Maria, and pulls them both into the rift.

Shadow has to tightly clench his fists and teeth to keep himself from following. Prof. Gerald, silent all of this time, finally speaks, "You aren't my Shadow, are you?"

"…I used to be."

"You came here through one of those things?"

Shadow nods slowly.

"Who does that make him?"

"Not your problem."

Gerald goes silent for several long seconds. "The things that you said…about your suffering…they were all true?"

Shadow nods again.

"…Dare I ask…what happens?"

Shadow gives a heavy sigh. "…I'm going to get Maria back. That's all you have to worry about." Changing the subject, he adds, "Oh, and Artificial Chaos. They've broken loose, and they're on a rampage. Make sure that your Shadow takes care of it. You may want to call in the military as well."

Gerald understands, but doesn't allow the change in subject. "It's Maria, isn't it? You will fail to save her. You will blame yourself, and you believe that you will never find peace because of it." He finishes more with statements than with questions.

Shadow, still looking away from his creator, takes several moments to respond. But suddenly, he turns to face him, his eyes seeming to well up with emotion. "It was Maria who saved me! I promised you that I would protect her with my life, but she didn't care! She had me make her a promise instead. And now, I can't keep that either…" He takes a slight pause as he turns away again. "I'm a failure. I don't deserve to exist any more than _he_ does."

"Shadow…" He places his hand on his creation's shoulder. Shadow looks back at him to sees that he holds the blue Emerald in his opposite hand. "I don't believe that I've ever told you this before…but I'm proud of you."

"What?"

"Never could I have imagined that you would become so completely…human. To feel regret. Fear. Love. These are the things I feared you would never come to comprehend. These are the things I feared Black Doom may have taken away from you. But now I see that you may be even more human than I am. I could never have asked for a better friend for my granddaughter. Now take this Emerald," He places it in his hand. "…and save Maria. For both of us." He thinks for another moment. "And remember. He hasn't seen your true power yet."

Shadow looks to the rings around his wrists in understanding. Then he looks back to Gerald, and gives a resolute nod. "Thank you…for everything." He leaps into the rift.

—–—

 **March 21st, 42 B.E.**

 **Research Facility EDEN**

Shadow comes out of the rift and immediately looks around. Blacklight and Maria are nowhere to be seen. Though the sky is still dark, the stars in the sky are beginning to disappear, marking the coming dawn.

"Impossible as it is, I knew that I would find you here eventually." Shadow turns suddenly to see Lt. Alfred Robotnik glaring at him through the hole in the wall that Blacklight had created. He steps out of the hole to draw nearer to Shadow. "I have just one question. Are you from the past? Or the future?"

Shadow starts to walk away. "I'm sorry, but I don't have time–"

"I will not have you ignore me, you traitorous wretch!"

He keeps walking. "If you want to find a traitor, you should help me look for _your_ creation."

"Liar!" Impressively for his age and stature, he dives at Shadow. Shadow steps to the side, and Alfred crashes to the ground. He quickly gets back up. "I don't care what you do to me. Whatever harm you inflict, Sunlight shall return to you tenfold!"

"Maria."

"What!?"

"He has Maria. He's holding her hostage. And if you don't let me go, he'll probably kill her."

"What kind of fool do you take me for!? Maria has been dead for 10 years! _You_ killed her!" Shadow doesn't say anything, but merely looks the Lieutenant in the eyes. After a moment, he mutters with irritation, "Time travel." After another moment, he continues, "Do you really expect me to believe you? Sunlight would never do such a thing. You, on the other hand…"

"Okay, so maybe I am lying. I'm sure you've already heard about what happened in town yesterday. Your creation assaulted a man over an _apple_."

"He doesn't understand social interaction yet! And, as I was told, _you_ kidnapped him immediately afterwards!"

"That was no kidnapping. If I hadn't saved him then, the military would've torn him apart. Or he would've torn them apart, and declared himself conqueror of the world. Your words, not mine."

After a moment of confusion, Alfred again mutters, "Time travel."

Shadow continues, "So, you can assume that it's all a lie. But are you willing to take that risk? You don't have to help me. You don't have to believe me. Just let me go." Without another word, Shadow starts to leave again. But he stops. "Oh, and by the way. He doesn't go by the name 'Sunlight' anymore. He prefers the name 'Blacklight'." He continues on his way. And this time, Alfred does nothing to stop him.

—–—

Blacklight reclines back on a rock in a familiar hilltop clearing by the town. "So, how's your day been going?"

Maria sits at the base of the rock, her head buried between her knees. She says nothing.

"What, it's a simple question." She remains silent. "Okay, I guess I'll start. In the past 24 hours, I've discovered my freedom, met the brother I never knew I had, and defeated him in battle…a few times. A pretty good day, I would say. How about you?"

She finally speaks, never looking at him. "Who are you?"

"Oh! My bad, my bad, I thought that had been covered already. I am Blacklight. That should tell you everything you need to know."

"That doesn't tell me anything."

"Nonsense! Of course it does. After all, when I call you Barbie, it tells me everything I need to know about you."

"That's not my name."

"Oh, it isn't? Well, I suppose I just assumed. So? Since you seem to care so much, what _is_ your name?"

"Maria."

"Maria? Well that doesn't make any sense. I'm…pretty sure you're more of a Barbie. Just saying."

For a while, they both go silent. Then Maria asks, "Why have you taken me here?"

"Why? Do I have to have a reason? Isn't this just such a nice place? Wouldn't you like to watch the sunrise here with me?" Maria does look around, but doesn't say anything. "Okay, you got me. We're waiting here for Shadow to show up. I must say, I was expecting him sooner."

"If you just want to see Shadow, why did you come here?"

"I say again. Nice place. Sunrise. Pefect. Is it so wrong for me to want to choose the place of our final true confrontation? Besides, I needed to make sure that he got the last Emerald first."

"…Why do you hate Shadow?"

"Hate him? Not at all! In fact, this past day with Shadow has been the most fun I've ever had in my entire life. We are truly two of a kind. And that's exactly the problem. So long as the both of us remain on an equal level, one will never cease in their pursuit to convert the other. Of course I want him to be like me. Of course he wants me to be like him. Each of us thinks ourselves right, and the other wrong. And neither of us will allow the other to be so wrong, with so much power."

"And you'll destroy him before you let him be wrong?"

"No. I'll destroy him before I let him stop me from being right. Of course, that may not be necessary. Shadow is learning more about the truth of this world with every passing hour."

Shadow's voice shouts, "Blacklight!"

"Ah, speak of the Shadow, and the Shadow doth appear." Shadow steps up onto the grassy side of the hill. Blacklight hops off of his rock, and takes a few steps across the rocky, lifeless side. "As you can see, I have upheld my end of the bargain. Your princess is safe, and most certainly not in another castle. Not that there was any doubt."

Shadow looks to Maria, who still crouches in front of the rock. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

"I…I'm fine."

Blacklight continues, "Good. Now that that's settled, it's time to set something straight. I understand how you might be under a sort of…conflict of interest, right now. So I'm going to offer you a choice. Choose correctly, and yon fair maiden shall be returned to thee. Choose incorrectly…and there still may be _some_ hope for you."

"What are you babbling about?"

"It's quite simple. You've had your time to think. Now choose. The humans? Or me?"

Maria suddenly cries out, "Shadow, what is he talking about? What's going on?"

Shadow sighs. "That's hardly a fair choice. …I'd be betrayed either way."

Maria gasps. "Shadow, what are you saying!?"

Blacklight feigns surprise. "Me? Betray you? Okay, well, maybe. But only because you're being so disagreeable. Now, business. Make the choice." He starts tapping his foot. "I'm waiting."

"Let's get one thing straight, Blacklight. I'd rather be completely alone than following you."

Blacklight sharply intakes breath as the muscles around his face and neck twitch slightly. "Oof. Tsk, tsk, tsk, Shadow. Wrong choice. Luckily for you, I'm feeling _very_ agreeable today. Unlike yourself. So, I'll be almost as happy with a barter. Give me your Chaos Emeralds, and the girl is yours."

"So you can use all seven to destroy us both? Not a chance."

"Alright, you got me. One Emerald, then." He thinks for a moment, then throws up a hand. "Wait! One Emerald…and an apple."

Shadow puts a hand up to his face, and growls in irritation. "I don't _have_ any _apples_. I'll give you the Emerald."

"Don't worry, don't worry, we can work this out. I'll approve you for a loan! You'll owe me one apple…with twenty percent annual interest, of course. I'd write you a contract, but I'm afraid that I don't have any paper on me. We'll have to consider this part of the deal itself as binding. Do you, Shadow the Hedgehog, hereby confirm that you have heard and agree to these conditions?"

"Fine, fine." He takes out the blue Emerald. "I'm going to put this on the ground, here." He does so. "You are going to walk towards it slowly, while I walk to Maria. Alright?"

"Come on, Shadow, you can trust me! When have you ever known me to break my word?"

"Several times, actually."

Blacklight thinks on that for a moment. "Okay, okay, I'll do the walking thing. Are you quite ready?"

Shadow nods, and slowly takes the first step. Blacklight does the same from the opposite side. They near the border between the rocky and grassy sides of the hill. The very first rays of the rising sun shine directly on the two at the exact moment that they lock eyes at the very center of the hill. Then they continue past each other. Unable to resist, Shadow starts to run the last few steps to Maria. But she flinches away from him. Closer inspection reveals her face to be streaming with tears. "Maria!? What's wrong?"

She cries, "I don't even know you anymore! He said that you're starting to think more like him. And then you said that humanity would betray you!?"

"Maria…"

"You've been avoiding me and ignoring me for all of this time! I couldn't understand why, but now…"

"Now, what?"

"Do you…do you hate me?" She looks up to him with fear and sorrow.

"Hate you? No, of course not! Maria, I…" Unsure of what to say, he reaches out a hand to comfort her. But she flinches away again.

Blacklight declares, "And so it begins. The one human you thought would stay on your side for an eternity…turned against you by something so trivial. They are afraid of us, Shadow. Every single one. They're afraid of what we'll do when we aren't on their side. But…isn't it sad?"

Shadow looks over to Blacklight. He points not at Maria, but at the blue Emerald he's picked up. It seems that he's moved on to a completely different topic.

"I mean, just look at it. It's so…blue. It almost makes you want to cry, doesn't it?" He sniffles.

Shadow slowly stands to face his opponent directly. "Alright, Blacklight. If you–"

"Ooh, you made a rhyme! 'Alright, Blacklight!' Good one! Here, let me try." He clears his throat. "If you'd like to fight, it would be my delight! See? Now, we're having fun. You know, we–"

"Argh!" Fed up for the last time, Shadow charges viciously at Blacklight.

Blacklight smirks. "Chaos Torrent!" He swiftly drags down a clawed hand, and a massive cascade of high-pressure water falls from nowhere onto Shadow, arresting his movement. When the water clears, Shadow appears more enraged than ever. "Great. Now you're all wet again, and neither of us are happy. I–"

"Chaos Spear!"

Blacklight barely dives out of the way of the attack. "You know, you're being very rude right now."

"Chaos Control!" Shadow appears behind Blacklight and strikes him in the back of the head, knocking him away.

Blacklight gets back up quickly, rubbing his head. "Alright, I'll admit. That hurt. Inside and out. I think I'll return by…drying you off again!" He switches to the cyan Emerald. "Chaos Tempest!" He unleashes his powerful wind attack.

Prepared this time, Shadow ducks down to the ground, and the wind blows harmlessly over him, though he is dried. As soon as the wind dies down, he leaps at Blacklight again.

Blacklight easily steps out of the way. Shadow tries to throw several more punches, each one skillfully dodged. "What's the matter, Shadow? Getting tired?" Shadow says nothing, and continues the onslaught. "Oh, enough of this. Chaos Terra!" He throws up a rock wall between the two of them, and the sound of Shadow's fist hitting it directly can be heard, as well as a grunt of pain.

Blacklight giggles a bit. He starts to walk around to one side of the wall. The moment Shadow sees him, he charges. "Chaos Terra!" A second wall rises. Another movement of his hand, and the sound of more rising rock can be heard. A third movement, and the walls all collapse around Shadow, completely sealing him in.

Inside of the rocky prison, Shadow closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. Gerald's words echo, _"He hasn't seen your true power yet."_

Blacklight shouts from outside, "Everything alright in there, Shadow? Air getting a little thin? I know that you could get out of there quite easily. Are you hiding from me?"

There is a high-pitched, echoing snap, and a bright flash of light as Shadow unclasps an Inhibitor Ring from one wrist, then the other. They both clatter to the floor.

Outside, Blacklight starts to knock on the rocky dome as one would on a door. "Helloooo? Anybody home?" Suddenly, the entire rock formation explodes outwards, forcing Blacklight to shield his face from the debris.

Shadow stands with his arms outstretched, as if he had destroyed the rock with the force of his hands alone. He glows with a faint yellow energy.

Blacklight looks on with interest. "Is that an upgrade I see? This should be fun. Chaos Inferno!" He unleashes another stream of flame.

Shadow charges straight into the fire, as the energy around him dispels and protects him from the flames. He hits Blacklight at full speed, launching him backwards.

Blacklight gets back up with a growl. He wastes no more words. "Chaos Terra!" He draws another rock wall from the ground, and hurls it at Shadow.

"Chaos Spear!" Shadow's attack obliterates the chunk of earth and keeps going, striking Blacklight once more.

Blacklight wipes himself off, the battle clearly not going in his favor. Then an idea strikes him. "Alright, Shadow. No more holding back." He pulls out the purple Emerald. "Chaos…" Shadow readies himself for the attack. But Blacklight suddenly turns to the side, facing Maria. "…Void!" With one hand, he unleashes a massive orb of shadowy energy directed straight at her.

Shadow shouts in fear, "Maria!" Acting on instinct alone, he sprints towards her as fast as his legs will possibly move. But they aren't fast enough to get her out of the way. Instead, he dives into the path of the attack. He pulls out the yellow Chaos Emerald, and holds it in front of him. "Chaos…Shine!" From the Emerald itself, a beam of blinding white light is unleashed, which impacts the orb of darkness, and momentarily stalls it in the air. Then the orb overpowers the beam, and strikes Shadow directly in the chest.

Maria cries out, "Shadow!" She runs over to the spot where he sprawls out onto the ground.

Shadow opens his eyes to see Maria standing over him. For a moment, he smiles. Then he starts to get up with a slight struggle, waving for Maria to get behind him.

Blacklight appears quite irritated. "Playing copycat now, are you? How _did_ you do that?"

Shadow kneels down, and reaches for one ankle. "It's just like you said, Blacklight." He removes the third Inhibitor Ring. "No more holding back. No more inhibition." He moves for the other ankle. "I suppose you should consider yourself lucky. You're about to see something in a way that no one ever has before." The final ring drops. "My full power." His yellow glow blazes into a radiant aura.

"Is that supposed to scare me? Really, you must try harder than that."

Shadow shrugs. "Suit yourself." In an instant, Shadow appears behind Blacklight, giving him just enough time to notice before striking.

Blacklight manages to land in a crouch, and counters with "Chaos Inferno!"

"Chaos Shine!" Shadow blocks the stream of fire with the orb of light he forms between his hands. The orb begins to expand as it absorbs the energy of the flames, until Shadow unleashes an even more intense beam of light. Blacklight tries to dive out of the way, but the beam is much too large, and he gets blasted by the attack.

Bruised and winded, Blacklight still manages to stand. "I'm not finished yet! Chaos Torrent!"

Shadow switches out his own Emerald. "Chaos Frost!" With a movement of his hand, he freezes the entire torrent of water above him into a solid pillar of ice. Then he crushes the ice into a thousand tiny shards, and flings them all at Blacklight.

Blacklight starts to fumble with several Emeralds at once, trying to figure out how to counter. At the last moment, he gets a hold of the green Emerald. He gets off a quick "Chaos Terra!" The wall of rock rises to shield him just in time.

While the shards of ice continue to shatter against the rock, Shadow continues with a "Chaos Spear!" The attack sticks into the wall, but Blacklight remains safe on the other side. Then the spear of energy explodes within the wall, blasting Blacklight further back, and showering him with small stones. Even Shadow seems surprised at his own power. But he quickly continues the onslaught. "Chaos Shine!"

"Chaos Void!" Blacklight counters Shadow's beam of light with his own beam of dark energy. The two beams collide, forming a growing orb of swirling light and dark energy. Suddenly, the orb bursts, creating a shockwave that knocks Blacklight back into the same rock he had once relaxed upon. The shockwave hardly affects Shadow, who walks over to the rock.

Blacklight struggles to get up, but collapses back to the ground again. Shadow looks down on him with contempt. Blacklight looks back up with some mixture of fear, sorrow, and awe. Shadow pulls out both of his Chaos Emeralds, which orbit closely around each other over one of his hands. Blacklight coughs meekly before asking, "Shadow…do you really…want to hurt me?" His eyes start to well up with tears.

After a moment's pause, Shadow slowly begins to shake his head. "No. No, I won't."

Blacklight looks up with hope. "Is that because…you really do care about me?"

Shadow scoffs. "Don't flatter yourself. I'll tell you why. I learned something recently. Something the likes of you could never understand. I learned that there's always a better way. That everyone, no matter who they are, deserves a chance. A chance to live." He looks back to Maria. "A chance…to be happy." She smiles back at him.

Blacklight gives a much more violent cough. "Even…me?"

Shadow nods, and extends his free hand. "I believe that you can change. Until that happens, you will remain my enemy. But it doesn't have to stay that way. Now, am I going to have to drag you home?"

Hesitantly, Blacklight takes Shadow's hand, and struggles back to his feet. Immediately, he begins a violent fit of coughing. He throws a hand up to indicate for Shadow to wait as he continues to cough into his arm. Then he suddenly turns and strikes Shadow directly in the chest, causing him to drop the Emeralds. Blacklight bends down to pick them up. "You perfect little fool. I was at your mercy, and now you've just let me win." He lifts the two into the air, and unites them with his five others. His feet lift from the ground. His white fur begins to darken as he starts to radiate a shadowy aura.

 **To be continued…**


	23. S0 E19: Project: Blacklight

"You perfect little fool. I was at your mercy, and now you've just let me win." Blacklight lifts Shadow's two Emeralds into the air, and unites them with his five others. His feet lift from the ground. His white fur begins to darken as he starts to radiate a shadowy aura.

Unable to do anything else, Shadow leaps at Blacklight in a desperate attempt to stop him.

Blacklight's aura flares to life as the transformation completes, creating a shockwave which knocks Shadow back. "Oh, it's far too late for that, _brother_." The Super Form of Blacklight has retained all of his various colors, except for his white fur, which has been almost entirely covered in pulsating purple shadows. However, a scattering of white spots and speckles have remained, glowing surprisingly bright. The whites of his eyes have turned yellow, and the pupils have turned crimson red. He starts to cough again. But when he finishes, he continues, "My reign over this _pathetic_ planet begins now. And I think I'll start by obliterating the two of you."

"Sunlight, what are you saying!? What's happened to you!?" All turn to see Lt. Alfred Robotnik.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 19**

 **Birth of Blacklight, Part 6: Project: Blacklight**

 _Written by ChaosProject_

 _Concept by ChaosProject_

* * *

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my dear old creator! Come crawling back to me, have you? Can't live without me? Is that why you kept me prisoner?"

"Prisoner? No! Sunlight, I kept you inside to protect you!"

"You were afraid that _they_ would hurt _me_?"

"No. I was afraid that they would try. Humans can be cruel, Sunlight. They can be quick to judge, and slow to accept new ideas. The world wasn't ready to accept you, and I knew that you weren't ready to accept that about them. Sunlight, please, don't hate them for something they can't control. They need time. _You_ need time!"

"Ah, time. I could tell you so much about time. But the last thing I need is more of it." He lets out another loud cough. "I'm tired of waiting. And I think, just for you, I'll change my plans. I'm going off into town. I'll show them all that they were perfectly right to fear me."

"Sunlight…"

"Stop calling me that! My name is Blackli–…no. This form deserves something special. Something original. Unexpected. You shall call me…Black Night, the Ultimate Bringer of Darkness. Black Night for short. Shadow, consider this a challenge. Stop me. Please. I want to see what sort of insane plan you can come up with. I'll give you a few minutes before I start blowing things up. Sound good?" Not waiting for an answer, he snaps his fingers and disappears in a burst of purple energy.

"How could I have let this happen…?"

Maria answers, "This isn't your fault."

Alfred slowly turns to face his daughter. "Maria…"

"Father…?"

Unable to contain himself, he runs to his daughter, tears streaming past his spectacles. He embraces her, and holds her as tightly as he possibly can. Several times he tries to speak, but never manages to get out more than a choked sob. Finally, he lets go enough to look her in the eyes. "It's true…you're really here. And he…" He looks for a moment off towards the town. He shakes his head. "You shouldn't be out here, it isn't safe for your health. Come on, I have to get you inside." He looks up to Shadow. "You come as well." He gets up and walks off, leading Maria with his hand.

—–—

 **EDEN**

Alfred leads the two into the whitewashed facility. Shadow has put his Inhibitor Rings back on. He walks with a slow limp, appearing heavily bruised. He breathes with a mild but continuous pant. Alfred continues speaking, "You'll be much safer in here, Maria. It's lucky that you haven't fallen ill after spending so much time in the open air. You still might have, I'll have to give you a complete checkup to be certain."

"Father, I have so many questions. Why–"

"I wish I could answer them now, dear. But I must tend to something else first. Please wait here for a moment." He turns to Shadow. "You…" He clears his throat. "I mean…Shadow. Come with me." He turns towards the back room of the lab, and leads Shadow inside.

Just as Blacklight had, Shadow directs his gaze towards one of the walls the moment he enters the room.

"So, you can feel it as well?"

Shadow thinks for a moment. Then he starts to nod slowly.

"Just as well." Gerald walks up to the wall, and begins tapping a code into its control pad. After a moment, the wall panel slides to the side, revealing the compartment containing seven Chaos Emeralds. Each one heavily pulsates its own colorful light, periodically filling the room with a rainbow-colored glow, and then dimming it again.

"All seven…"

"I've held them here ever since Sunlight was created. He noticed them here, but…I don't think he ever realized what they were. Take them. You'll need them."

"What!? Are you insane!?"

"There's no other way. You won't defeat him without them."

"Do you have any idea what will happen if these Emeralds go anywhere near his!?"

"No, and neither do you. Fight him from a distance if you must, but you have to defeat him at any cost! Do you understand me?"

Shadow doesn't answer for a moment. "It could kill us both. You're really willing to let that happen?"

"He crossed the line when he threatened my daughter. If he dies…" He hesitates, but continues through clenched teeth, "…so be it. The risk to you is your choice alone."

Shadow nods. "I'll do it." Alfred steps out of the way, and indicates for Shadow to proceed. Shadow holds his hand out towards the compartment, and the Emeralds lift towards him in a line, and begin their orbit around him. His feet lift from the ground as he is filled with their energy. His black fur glows gold as the transformation completes. He gives Alfred one last nod, before he snaps his fingers and disappears.

—–—

Despite his ability to float, Black Night strolls through town, taking in the sights. He coughs loudly. Few people are out at the early hour, but the sound of shutting doors and window shutters can be heard as he walks past. One man turns towards him at the intersection of a road, not noticing him immediately. Blacklight shouts, "You there!" The man looks up. "Yes, you! Do you have the time? I'm supposed to be meeting someone here."

The man recoils at the sight of the demon-eyed shadowy hedgehog. "Ah! What kind of freak are you!?"

"Now that's no way to treat a stranger! I only wanted to ask you a question. Why, I oughtta–"

"Looking for someone?"

Black Night turns to face his golden doppleganger. "Shadow, ya made it! And here I was beginning to think that you didn't have the guts. But I guess I can't be right about _everything_."

"Leave the people out of this, Blacklight. This is between you and me."

"That's Black Night! Night! Get it right! Hey, I rhymed again!" Wordlessly, Shadow starts to float higher into the air. "Hey, where ya goin'?" Black Night soars up after him.

Shadow comes to a stop high above the city.

"Ooh, nice view. I see why you brought me up here. This whole floating thing…kinda fun, don'tcha think? Oh, look, you can see our little spot from up here."

Shadow silently shakes his head.

"Aw, what's the matter, _mon ami_? Don't you care about having fun? Isn't that why you came here?" He turns to face another direction, so that his eyes can be seen clearly, head-on. "Isn't that why _**you**_ came here?" He lets out another loud cough.

"I'm done with your games. I'm here to finish this."

Black Night doesn't turn back to Shadow, but still keeps his eyes locked straight ahead. "So you've said before. But the games will _**never end**_ , not if I have anything to say about it. After all, what is your life but a _**series of games**_? Or, rather, the lack thereof. You could really stand to start doing better in that area."

"You know nothing about my life. The story of my life goes far beyond these silly games that you care about."

Black Night thinks about that for a moment as he stares intensely at the nothingness in front of him. "Perhaps you're right. Maybe someday, if I'm lucky, I too may transcend this game into a true story, as you have. But first, I suppose this game must meet its end. And of course, we mustn't forget the poorly-received but all-the-same brilliant sequel, leaving me abandoned and nearly forgotten by all but my most dedicated fans. Then I might be good enough for a true story." He finally looks back to Shadow. "Before we do battle, I have one last request."

"And that is?"

"Let me look at you." He floats forward slightly, but Shadow floats back to match. He shrugs, contenting himself to observe from afar. He travels in a wide circle around Shadow to view him from all angles. "I see now that you are no Shadow. In fact, you bring shame to the name. But neither are you a ray of sunshine. You are what lies in the middle, and you deserve a name to match. How about…"

"Chaos…"

"Actually, that could work quite well, though–"

"Spear!" Super Shadow's spear of light sends Black Night flying back.

"Rude! Rude, Shadow! Does the word mean nothing to you!? It seems that I have no choice but to teach you manners myself!" His seven Emeralds begin to circle him. He takes one arm and starts to lift it upwards, causing the entire river running around the town below to suddenly start flowing straight up, towards himself. As he does, all trace of color on him, save for his primary shadowy black fur, turns dark blue. He then does a similar movement with his opposite arm, lifting a moderately-sized hill from the ground of the opposite side of town, and crushing it into rubble, as his colors shift to dark green. The two streams of raw element begin to circle him, each in a different orbit than the Emeralds, and perpendicular to each other. He adds a stream of wind, which picks up some stray dust and and water droplets, turning his colors light cyan-blue. He produces a stream of fire, and diverts some of the water into shards of ice, creating a near-complete sphere of elements around himself. Finally, from the center of the sphere begins to seep a torrent of pulsating, shadowy purple fog-like energy, which stretches all the way to the ground before beginning to take a roughly humanoid shape, with the orb of elements at its head. Then the elements break their orbits, and move to cover various parts of the shadowy figure, creating an elemental golem. Black Night's voice booms from inside, "You want to finish this game? Here's your final boss!"

"Let's finish this!" Immediately, the golem hurls a massive rock at Shadow. Shadow zooms in, on the offensive. "Chaos Spear!" He throws his own attack, strong enough to deflect the rock out of his way. Black Night tries to swat him away with an icy hand, but he dives out of the way. Not relenting, the golem continues to breath a massive stream of fire from its mouth, which Shadow weaves around. Finally, he dashes straight into the golem's chest, wreaking havoc as he attempts to destroy it from the inside. But the golem reaches with a rocky hand into its own chest after him, and rips him out. Shadow struggles to escape, but its grasp is too tight. Suddenly, he relaxes, and starts to spark with a red energy. "Chaos Blast!" The explosion completely obliterates the golem's hand, giving Shadow a chance to retreat back.

"Do you really think that you can defeat me that way!?" As Black Night speaks, the golem's hand and chest reform exactly as they were before.

Shadow growls, "He's right. It's useless to fight him like this. But I can't get in close, either. Something has to change." He starts to reach for one of wrists.

"Ah, the gloves are about to come off, I see. Or, rather, the Rings. Still falling back on the same old tricks, I see. Though I must say, you weren't looking too healthy after last time. Are you sure you want to go through with it again?"

Shadow's Inhibitor Rings have already dropped far down below. "You've left me no other choice. Chaos Shine!" Shadow unleashes an intense beam of light energy.

"Chaos Void!" An equally intense shadowy beam exits from the center of the golem's chest, colliding with Shadow's and creating a swirling orb just like last time. The orb grows to a massive size before detonating, creating a powerful shockwave and a thick cloud of smoke.

Shadow quickly soars out of the cloud. Black Night unleashes another powerful breath of fire. "Chaos Torrent!" Shadow dispels the flames with an onrush of water. The golem throws thousands of shards of ice. "Chaos Inferno!" Shadow vaporizes the ice with a stream of fire. The golem tries to strike him with a rocky fist. "Chaos Terra!" Rather than counter the attack, Shadow takes control of the earth with his own power, and tears it off of the golem's shadowy core. "Chaos Frost!" He does the same with the ice. He closes his eyes for focus, and finishes off the rest with a single movement, leaving only the hazy, shadowy figure, with Black Night's glowing eyes barely visible in the center of the head. "Chaos Shine!" This time up close, Shadow's beam of light completely dispels every inch of darkness that it touches, as he sweeps it up until it blasts through the head, where Black Night lies.

As Black Night is knocked back, all of the remaining energy dissipates, leaving only the two hedgehogs. He gives Shadow a big smile. "Shadow, I'm very impressed. In fact, I'm quite proud." He spreads his arms out wide. "How about a hug for your bro?" He starts to float closer to Shadow. Shadow zooms backwards in response. "What's wrong? Don't you want a hug? You look like you could use a hug. Have you _ever_ been hugged before? Come here!" This time he flies towards Shadow at top speed.

"Chaos Tempest!" Shadow tries to keep Black Night back with the force of wind, and momentarily succeeds. Until Black Night pulls out a cyan Emerald of his own. Before he can even begin an attack, an arc of cyan lightning suddenly forms between his Emerald and Shadow's, which seems to exert a force pulling the two together. After a moment of pulling, six more arcs of colorful energy connect the two hedgehogs together, one matching the color of each Emerald. Shadow tries to pull himself away, but has become completely trapped by the strange force. The two draw closer and closer as Shadow shouts, "No!" Then the two hedgehogs touch, and everything goes white.

—–—

 **?**

An intense, continuous sound can be heard, like that of a raging river. Slowly, Super Shadow opens his eyes. He is surrounded on all sides by two kinds of energy, one of gold and white, the other of purple and black, which flow around him. The two are unevenly mixed, in small shreds in some places, and large patches in others. In a somewhat erratic fashion, the two energies are constantly morphing and flowing, one type of energy almost constantly flowing into and overtaking the other, only to be itself overtaken. "What…what is this place…?" His voice echoes off into the distance.

"An excellent question." Another loud cough announces the presence of Black Night.

Shadow groans. "Why can't we both have just died?"

Black Night emerges from the swirl of energy. As he does, the area around him grows intensely more erratic, with light and darkness shifting and stabbing into each other so quickly that it almost can't be tracked by the eye. "But Shadow! If I were dead, then the world would have to miss out on my unique and exciting brand of comedy!" Shadow glares at him. "What? I wasn't joking. Or was I? Hm."

Shadow sighs. "What do you know about this place?"

"Oh, right, that. Tell me, Shadow, when you use Chaos Control, what do you see?"

"See?" Black Night nods. "I see the place that I was, and then the place that I end up."

"I'm afraid that's incorrect. Go ahead. Think about it. Think about that one, momentary _instant_ ," he snaps his fingers, "between starting point and destination."

Shadow scrunches his face as he thinks hard. "There isn't any…or…is there?" He starts to look around, perhaps gaining some vague recognition of the strange realm.

"You got it. Welcome to the Flow of Chaos. We are currently connected to all of space, and all of time."

"And…this energy around us?"

Black Night shrugs. "Heck if I know. So…what now?"

"I'd say nothing's changed." Shadow takes a fighting stance in the air.

"Yes, yes, you're probably right. But do you really want to fight in here? Doesn't it seem almost…blasphemous?" Shadow says nothing. "Fine, fine, take the first move. I'm ready."

Shadow takes the opportunity. "Chaos Frost!" He throws his hand forward. But nothing happens.

"Uh…hate to break this to you, but there isn't any ice in here."

"Chaos Tempest!"

"Or air, for that matter. Here, let me try. Chaos Void!" Rather than emerging from himself, the dark energy from the realm around them is thrown from its place, towards Shadow in a massive onrush.

"Chaos Shine!" At the last moment, Shadow throws the light energy from its own place, countering the dark in perfect balance. After a moment of driving against each other, the energies simply dissolve and return to their places in the realm around them. Changing tactics, Shadow dashes at his opponent.

Black Night dashes back, and the two collide in the middle. The moment they make contact, the energies in the realm polarize around them, with all of the light concentrating on Shadow's side, and the dark on Black Night's. The two drive against each other with all of their might, forced even harder by the energies around them. Then they're forced to break off, and the realm returns to normal once more.

Shadow immediately continues the onslaught, as does Black Night. Each time the two strike, the energies of the realm polarize again. Again and again they strike each other, the full force of Light and Darkness behind them, each one a perfectly equal match for the other.

Suddenly, Black Night doubles over in yet another fit of violent coughing. Shadow wastes no time. "Chaos Shine!" All of the realm's light energy is hurled at Black Night, with no chance of being blocked. He is hit by the full force of the attack, a continuous torrent of light. When the light fades again, the semi-conscious form of Blacklight is revealed, his shadowy aura fading rapidly. Shadow dives in and grabs him, shouting, "Chaos Control!"

—–—

Super Shadow drops Blacklight onto the center of the hill by the town. Blacklight struggles to stand, coughing meekly. "So…this is it, huh? I… …I guess you won the game. I just don't understand…how you could have beat me. I am pure…and you are just some…alien mongrel."

Shadow shakes his head. "You still don't get it, do you? Your DNA…your name…it's all the same, it makes no difference. Who you are isn't determined by what you've been given. It's determined by what you do with it. There is no destiny that can't be changed through action."

"Grant me…one last request. Tell Maria…she'll always be a Barbie to me." He suddenly breaks down into the most violent fit of coughing yet. When he looks up again, a drop of red can be seen pooling at the corner of his mouth, as he looks to Shadow with genuine fear in his eyes. Then he collapses back to the ground.

—–—

Maria hops off of the examination table. "Is that all, father?"

Alfred finishes looking over the last of the diagnostic data that's appeared on his screen. "Yes…there is no immediate threat to your health. It seems like your grandfather's treatments have been relatively effective."

"Grandfather has been telling me that he's very close to a cure. He says that, soon, I'll be able to…" She starts to laugh. "He says I'll be able to go down to the planet with Shadow. But I guess I've already done that, now. I was so looking forward to seeing the grass, and the trees, and the sky…and meeting you. I wasn't expecting any of it to happen like this."

"I…wasn't quite expecting this, either."

"Father, do you think Shadow will be alright?"

"…I do. Shadow has an incredible strength of will. He will not give up."

As if on cue, Shadow steps through the door, and drops Sunlight onto the floor. "He's dying."

The Robotniks at once shout, "Shadow!" Alfred runs up to his creation. But then he stops. "You want me to save him?"

"He doesn't deserve death."

Alfred looks down to Blacklight. The blood on his lips is beginning to dry. "I'll do what I can." He looks back up to Shadow. But Shadow has already dropped to the floor as well.

—–—

 _The glittering blue marble that is Earth glows faintly beneath the light of of a thousand stars. The sun can be seen breaking over the other side. "Take a good look, Shadow." Professor Gerald steps up behind Shadow, and they stare out of the ARK window together. "Everything down there…will someday be in your hands."_

 _Shadow looks up to his creator. "What does that mean? In my hands?""_

 _"The world will be yours, not to control, but to protect."_

 _"Me? Protect the entire world? How can I do that?"_

 _"It's been done for centuries."_

 _"What are you talking about?"_

 _Gerald pauses. "Shadow…do you know why you are a hedgehog?"_

 _"Well…because that's what you made me."_

 _"Yes, but I could have made you anything. Something with more natural power, something with…regenerative capabilities. But those ideas failed. And I decided on a hedgehog as the final form. I decided on you."_

 _"Why?"_

 _Gerald pauses again. "It was because of something that happened to me…a long time ago. My life was saved by a hedgehog. I had never seen anything like him before. He could do things that seemed…impossible. When I asked him how…he told me a story. An ancient legend about a chosen one called 'the Controller'. According to this legend, a new Controller is born with each generation, tasked with protecting the world by wielding the power of Chaos. When the story was done, he disappeared. I was alone on that day. As the years went on, I began to wonder if it wasn't all just a dream, or an illusion. But it was no dream. All that he said about Chaos turned out to be true, and I have no doubt that the rest of the legend was as well."_

 _"If the world is already protected by the Controller, what does it need me for?"_

 _"You see, Shadow…there is a flaw in this generational system of Controllers. Each one must start from scratch. One must die for the next to be born, and so their knowledge must die as well. But you, Shadow, can change that. When you go down to the planet someday…I want you to seek out the Controller. Learn from him all that he has to teach. And when the next Controller comes…you will become the teacher. Eventually, the day will come when the two of you together will save the world from the ultimate calamity."_

 _Another voice shouts happily, "Shadow, there you are!" Maria runs up to greet her friend._

 _Shadow looks up to Gerald questioningly. Gerald smiles back. "That's alright, Shadow. You can go. Just don't forget about what I told you. And, just one other thing. Wake up."_

 _"What?"_

 _Maria takes Shadow's hands in hers. "Wake up, Shadow. Wake up. Wake up…"_

Shadow opens his eyes to see Maria and Alfred standing over him. "Shadow, are you alright?"

Shadow props himself up on the examination table, clutching his head. "I…think so. How long…?"

Alfred answers, "You've been unconscious for several hours. It's nearly noon."

"Blacklight…?"

Alfred points over to a familiar pod next to a computer console. On the other side of the glass lies the unconscious Blacklight, the faintest peaceful smile on his face. "When I created him, I knew there was a chance…if he were to use too much energy within a short period of time…that it could kill him. But I never imagined it would be possible to use so much."

"Is he…?"

"He's alive. Barely. I knew of no other way to save him. His body needs time to regenerate. And you almost had to go in there with him."

For the first time, Shadow notices that his Inhibitor Rings have been reattached.

"Those rings of yours are of an incredible design. Only my father could have made such a device. They saved you this time. But I can't say that for the future."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm no expert on the subject, but I do know that every moment you go without those rings puts your body in danger. I wouldn't advise removing them in the future."

Shadow sighs. Then he gets to his feet, and walks over to Blacklight's pod. He stares into it for a long time. "I came here to protect history. So why am I trying to change it? Why can't I just let him die? That's how it was supposed to happen."

"You saved someone's life. You shouldn't be ashamed of that."

"But at what cost? I don't know, so why am I so certain that this is right?"

Alfred thinks for a moment. "If he came to your time…instead of you to his…would you have saved him then? If it would only affect your future, and not your past?" After a moment, Shadow nods. "When you make a decision in the present, it affects the course of the future. From your perspective, my future has already happened. But from my perspective, your past hasn't, and I can still take action to change what seems like destiny to you. This is no different."

Shadow thinks on this for a while. "All the same, I must do what I can to protect the world that I know. That's why you have to hide him. Somewhere different from where you're hiding me, somewhere no one will find him for at least forty years. You have to make sure that you never acknowledge that he's alive, or some idiot will go looking for him. And someday…if he ever wakes up…I'll be there, ready for whatever he thinks to try."

Alfred nods. "As far as history is concerned, he is dead."

Shadow starts to think again. Suddenly, something strikes him. "The Emeralds! Where are the Emeralds?"

"Still here. Follow me." Alfred moves towards the back room of the facility, and Shadow and Maria follow. Seven Chaos Emeralds stick to the side of the back wall, pulsating wildly. "The other seven are on the opposite side of the panel. It seems that they're too strongly attracted to each other to scatter." Shadow nods slowly. "Will you be able to use them to get home?"

"I think so."

"I suppose that means…you'll be taking Maria as well?"

Shadow nods. "She needs to go home."

The father slowly turns to face his doomed daughter. "Maria…I'm afraid this is where we must say goodbye."

"But father, we've spent so little time together! Can't you come with us?"

"Oh, how I wish I could. But where you're going…I can't follow." He sighs.

"Father…will I ever see you again?""

Alfred freezes up. "Uh-…anything is possible."

Maria looks down solemnly. "Goodbye, father."

Alfred kneels down to look her in the eyes. "Maria…I love you. Please, don't ever forget that. You bring light into every life that you touch. Even these few hours that we've spent together have been more than I ever could have hoped for." The two embrace. "Goodbye, my daughter." They separate again, and Alfred looks to Shadow.

Shadow nods, and stretches his hand out towards the Emeralds. Faltering slightly, they are pulled from their place against the wall, and orbit tightly just above his open hand. Alfred types the usual code into the control pad, and the wall panel slides open, revealing the other seven. Shadow repeats his previous action with his opposite hand, sure to keep the two sets of Emeralds as far apart as he can hold them with his outstretched arms. He looks to Maria. "Hold on to me. And don't let go." She grabs ahold of his arm. Then he looks to Alfred. "You might want to stand back."

Alfred obeys. "Shadow…thank you. For helping me to understand."

Shadow only gives one final nod in response. Then he slowly draws his two outstretched hands together, causing the sets of Emeralds to react to each other. Within moments, everything goes completely white.

—–—

 **The Flow of Chaos**

Shadow opens his eyes to see the same realm of swirling energies as before.

"Shadow…what is this place?"

He looks back to Maria behind him, to see nothing but pure, intense light energy behind her. "Maria…do you see that behind you?"

She looks to that side of the realm. "It's…so bright."

"I think…it's you. That's the light you bring to the world. " They both stare at the sight for a while. "Maria…everything that's happened today…I know it seems strange, but you can't talk about it to anyone. Not even me."

"I don't think that I understand, but…I'll do anything for you. You know that, Shadow."

"There's one more thing I need you to do for me."

"Anything."

"If things…ever look bleak…I want you to remind me…about what we've always talked about. Make me promise…to protect people. To give them a chance at happiness. We promised that's what we would fight for, and if I forget everything else, I want to remember that. And I will keep that promise, no matter what tries to stop me."

Maria smiles at him. "I'll never forget."

Shadow goes silent for a while. "This realm…is connected to all of space, and all of time. That means I can put you back right now."

"Put me back? Aren't you coming with me?"

"I'll meet you on the other side, don't worry about me." He places a blue Emerald into her hands. "Give this back to the Professor, alright?" She nods. "Are you ready?" She nods again. "Okay. Maria…goodbye."

She smiles. "See you soon."

Shadow's only answer is with a long sigh. "Chaos…Control." In a flash, his companion disappears. "I'm sorry that I couldn't save you. But I'll never forget my promise. Never again." His words echo off into nowhere. He looks to the six remaining Emeralds in one hand. "These have to go back to where they came from. Chaos Control." Four of them disappear, leaving the purple and the yellow from his own time. He looks to the seven in his other hand. "These go back to the Lieutenant. Chaos Control." All seven disappear, leaving him with only two. "And now…I must return as well." He spends another moment staring into the depths of the strange realm. The swirling of the energies seems more calm than it once was. "From here…everything changes. From here…I start writing my own destiny! Chaos Control!"

—–—

 **Present Day—March 20th, 0 B.E.**

 **Eggmanland**

The purple Chaos Emerald begins to lift into the air, swirling around faster and faster as it rises. The moment it contacts the roof of Eggman's Chaos Control Prototype, a bright flash of blue swallows it, and the entire field of light lining the chamber collapses in on itself with one final spark of blue lightning. The Emerald is gone.

After an awkward silence, Cubot announces, "So, how do we know if worked?"

Orbot answers, "I certainly don't feel any different. Does it look like anything around us has changed?"

Eggman shouts, "You fools! You wouldn't notice any difference if the timeline had changed! Your–" He is cut off by a high-pitched whine. The purple Emerald appears in a flash of light, and drops back to the floor of the chamber. "What!?" He goes around to the inside of the chamber, and picks up the Emerald. "It seems the time-travel process has failed." He thinks for a moment. "Scrap this useless machine. Another failed experiment."

Cubot responds, "But sir! You sent the Emerald ten seconds into the future! Just imagine the possibilities!"

Eggman groans, and leaves the room.

—–—

"Hey, Shadow! Shadow, you alright?"

Shadow, startled, looks up to Sonic suddenly. He changes to look at his own hands, then up to the thriving tree he sits under. He looks back to Sonic, and stares intensely at his face.

"Shadow, what's going on? First you stare blankly into space, and now you're staring at me!"

"No scar…"

"What? Scar?"

Struck by a new thought, Shadow looks around for the tablet device, and quickly finds it lying next to him. He activates it. The last confessions of Lt. Alfred Robotnik are displayed, exactly as normal. "It's back to normal…no reference to me… I have to make sure!" He suddenly rises to his feet, and sprints off.

"Hey, where ya goin'!?" Sonic pursues.

It seems Shadow's tree was never far from EDEN, as he quickly arrives at an old, abandoned facility. Where there was once a hole in the wall has been covered up by wooden boards. Shadow easily breaks through them, just as Sonic catches up.

"Shadow, what's going on? What is this place?"

Shadow continues inside. The place is dim and dusty, and all of the machines and materials inside have been emptied out. But Shadow is still able to find his way to the back room. He wipes a layer of grime off of the control panel attached to the back wall. It glows faintly, looking to be on the verge of flickering out. But it still functions. Shadow reaches out to enter the code, but stops as he realizes that he never saw what it was. The obvious answer strikes him quickly. He types in the password, "MARIA". Stalling a few times, the wall panel slides open. Inside is a single slip of aged paper. Shadow picks it up. It's a note.

 _Shadow:_

 _It wasn't long before the military came to take you away, just as you led me to suspect. They obtained all of my father's files, including his diary, but I refused to give them the password to open your pod that you've undoubtedly just entered. Your history should be intact. As for the other one…they never suspected a thing. He is safely hidden away._

"The other one?" Sonic is looking over Shadow's shoulder. "Shadow, who wrote this? What's he talking about?"

Shadow addresses Sonic for the first time. "It doesn't matter who or what. All that matters is that everything is right."

 **The end of one Adventure…**

 **And the beginning of another.**


	24. S0 E20: Earth and Sky

"Everything is wrong." The chorus of voices echo off into the empty void. "Along the current course of events, the Controller will perish before the conclusion of the year. His successor will fail. The cycle will end. The world will be permanently consumed in Darkness."

The voices answer to themselves, "We must determine the cause of this change. We will summon the Lord of Time."

Just as the voices say, a figure begins to materialize in the void. It is tall and humanoid, and appears to be made of wood. One of its shoulders resembles the sun, and the other, the moon. It has a sundial on its head and markings resembling a clock face on its front. It is Chronos, the guardian of the Temporal Sapphires. "Why have you called me here, wise ones?"

"There has been…an aberration in the timeline. The natural course of events have been significantly altered. How has this occurred under your oversight?"

"Ah, yes, this timeline. I have been keeping a special eye on this one. Certainly an unexpected turn of events which has occurred."

"Is it not your task to prevent such turns?"

"No. It is not my typical place to prevent natural occurrences of time-travel."

"If this change was natural, why did we not foresee it?"

"Your powers of foresight are limited, wise ones. You see only the results of actions partaken by individuals who are not inert in the natural Flow of Chaos."

"You mean to say that time-travel occurred without the power of Chaos?"

"No. I mean to say that there is a Chaos-wielding individual who is not accounted for in the natural Flow. A sort of…Outlier."

"An Outlier? That is impossible. The slightest imbalance in such an individual would ruin the Balance of the entire universe."

"Not if there is no imbalance." There is a pause. "Clearly, this aberration is of great concern to you. If you'd like, I can erase your entire timeline. No more aberration. That's all I can do."

The voices don't take kindly to the joke. "That won't be necessary. Thank you for your assistance, Chronos."

"It was my pleasure, wise ones. But I must be returning to work now." He fades away in the same manner as he appeared.

"The death of the Controller cannot be allowed. The Lord of Time could not help."

They again answer to themselves, "That leaves only one option. We must intervene."

"Our last such intervention brought centuries of Darkness unto the world."

"We must take precautions. But we must intervene."

A single voice repeats, "I must intervene."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 20**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 1: Earth and Sky**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **June 23rd, 0 B.E.**

 **Starry Hill Zone**

The brilliant summer starlight illuminates the sloping, grassy hills. The bright lights of city skyscrapers can be seen not too far in the distance, though not close enough to outshine the stars. A shooting star streaks through the sky. A single cloud slowly blows into view. Then a familiar plane tears through it.

Sonic shouts from the wing of the _Tornado_ , "So what'd you get me up so early for, anyway?"

Tails answers from the pilot's seat, "Sorry, but it couldn't wait 'till morning this time. Central City is in serious danger! There's a meteorite heading right for it!"

"I thought you said these meteor showers were harmless!"

"That's just the thing. Meteors burn up in the atmosphere. But initial scans have shown that this meteorite is made of some very rare materials, and it's going to hit the surface."

"So we're gonna blast it?"

"Not exactly. If we break it into pieces, the damage will just spread out. We need to throw it off course, make it hit the hills instead. That's where you come in."

"You want _me_ to smash it?"

"It's not an elegant plan, but yeah. Just give it a good whack!"

"Got it!"

The two continue to fly through the warm summer air. Soon, an extra light appears in the sky above them, growing rapidly. "Here it comes! Get ready!" The light takes the clear shape of a falling rock. "Now!"

Sonic leaps off of the wing of the plane, and curls into a spin attack. He strikes the rock just as it crosses their path, splitting it in two. The two pieces tumble off in the direction Sonic struck, safely away from the city. But as one of the pieces falls, in turns to reveal a colorful glow emitted from a hard-cut gem at its core. Sonic lands back on the _Tornado_ , shouting, "That was a Chaos Emerald!"

"An Emerald? Why would–"

"I'm going after it!" He dives off of the plane.

"Hey, wait!" Tails sighs in exasperation.

Sonic lands in a crouch on the solid ground below, and takes off in the direction of the meteorite. Tails' voice calls through the communicator in his ear, "Sonic, I know you're excited, but you can't just jump off the plane like that!"

"Since when are _you_ the one worried about _my_ safety?"

"Since you told me not let you recklessly put yourself in danger anymore, remember?"

"Oh, right."

"I'm not convinced that was really an Emerald. Don't get too close until I catch up, alright?"

"No promises."

—–—

Sonic hops over the lip of a moderately-sized crater. At the center of the crater lies the half-meteorite, its gem still half-exposed. It certainly might be mistaken for a Chaos Emerald at first glance, being the same shape and size. However, it glows not one color, but a rainbow of seven colors all at once. The sight of it fills Sonic's eyes with wonder. He starts to walk closer to it, stuck in a trance-like state. Even before he's gotten to it, he reaches his hand out for it.

"Sonic, hold on!" Sonic looks over to Tails, startled at the sudden sound. "Don't touch it, we still don't know what it is!"

"I…I don't know what came over me. I think it's…calling to me."

Tails doesn't seem to hear him, as he's already examining the gem up close, though still careful to keep some slight distance at all times. "See? It's definitely not a Chaos Emerald."

"Do you think it's…some kind of fake?"

"I know a thing or two about fake Emeralds…and I don't think that's it. This one's too bright, brighter than a normal Emerald, even."

"It wants me to pick it up."

"What?" Still only paying half attention, Tails pulls out his Handheld tablet device, and uses it to start scanning the gem.

"I can feel it. It wants me to take it."

"Don't be ridiculous, Sonic. I know that the Chaos Emeralds can seem strange sometimes, but they're still inanimate objects, and so is this. It can't 'want' anything."

"Yeah…you're probably right."

"Huh…this is definitely Chaos energy it's putting out…but it's in some sort of odd pattern, readings are all over the place. I'll set the Handheld to record it and look for any patterns. As for the material…I can't get any reading at all."

"What's that supposed mean?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary, the Chaos Emeralds are the same way. I have some special instruments back at my lab I can use to look for more detail. Until then…" He pulls out a cylindrical glass container and a pair of metal tongs. "…let's make sure nothing happens to it." He grasps the gem with the tongs and, with slight effort, pulls it out of the rock. He carefully places it into the container, and seals it shut.

Sonic seems to relax a bit. "So, we can't just keep calling it 'it', can we?"

Tails thinks on that for a moment. "Well…a mysterious multicolored gemstone that fell from the night sky…sound like a Moonstone to me."

"The Chaos Moonstone, huh? I like it."

"Alright then. Let's get this Moonstone back to the Mystic Ruins. I didn't land the _Tornado_ far from here, come on." The two start making their way back to the plane, leaving the rest of the meteorite behind.

The rock they left behind starts to vibrate slightly. Then, a few drops of some sort of shining golden liquid seep into the hole left by the removed gem. The hole is quickly filled, then overflowed, as the viscous fluid almost seems to crawl away from the meteorite, towards the outside of the crater. As the _Tornado_ passes by the edge of the crater, preparing to take off, the pile of liquified light somehow leaps from the ground, latching onto the retracting wheel of the plane.

—–—

 **Mystic Ruins**

Tails inserts the case containing the Moonstone into a large machine clearly meant to hold it. The whole machine lights up as it begins to scan the gem. "There we go." He takes a step back to stand next to Sonic, and watch the machine do its work.

Behind them, the strange golden liquid inches its way along the back wall.

As the machine does its work and the liquid crawls along, Sonic tries to make conversation. "Tails…have you ever heard the of word, 'animoid'?"

Tails thinks for a moment. "Once or twice, yeah. It's a pretty archaic word. It refers to…people like us, I guess." The liquid light passes under a table.

"But that's just the thing. We aren't 'people'."

"Well, sure we are. We don't have to be human to be people. I suppose the technical term would be–"

"Anthropomorphic superhuman animal, yeah. It's a mouthful." Underneath the table lies the yellow Chaos Emerald, concealed from view.

"I guess that's the kind of confusion the word was made to avoid."

"Maybe it's…time for a revival?" The liquid leaps onto the Emerald, wrapping itself all the way around it. The force of the jump knocks the Emerald partially out of its hiding place, causing a slight clatter.

The sound causes Sonic to turn his head. He notices a faint yellow glow coming from just under the table, and walks over to investigate. "Tails, look!" He holds up the Emerald. The liquified light is nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, no! You weren't supposed to see that!" He runs over to Sonic, clutching his head. "Well, there goes the surprise, I guess. Happy Birthday, Sonic."

"You got me a Chaos Emerald for my Birthday?"

"Well, yeah, I thought…you know…with the…thing going on, and…you being…" He trails off. "It was a stupid idea, wasn't it?"

"No, not at all! You got me one of the seven rarest and most valuable objects on the planet, and I get to use it to save the world! What better gift could there be? Thank you."

Tails smiles. "I have a cake in the basement, too. I considered throwing you a big party, but I figured you would appreciate something a little more laid-back. Besides, it would be hard to top that one party a couple years ago."

"That one?"

"Don't you remember? I invited _everyone_."

"Oh, yeah…" He doesn't seem to think about that too much, distracted by the object he holds. "Something feels…different, about this Emerald."

Tails answers almost defensively, "It's not a fake, I promise."

"No, it's not that, it's just…I can't explain it."

"Your brain's probably still a little messed up from the effects of the Moonstone. Maybe you should sit down for a while."

"No, no, I'm fine. It's probably nothing." He looks back to the Moonstone. "So how's that coming along?"

Tails walks up to the scanning machine's display screen, and starts examining the data. "Scanning is…40% complete. By looks of it, it definitely has the same lattice structure as a Chaos Emerald…but I still can't be sure about the material. There's definitely some kind of pattern here with the energy it's exuding. I count…four specific different wavelengths. And its switching between them at very specific intervals, always a multiple of…" He looks up to Sonic. "…7 milliseconds exactly."

"What do you think it means? Some kind of code?"

"I can't say anything for sure. I can start analyzing the pattern immediately, but it'll take at least a few hours."

"A few hours…"

"What's the matter? Have somewhere to be?"

"Actually, I've been meaning to meaning to pay Knuckles a visit over on Angel Island."

"Well why didn't you just say so? I could've taken you over there any time. We can go right now."

"Don't worry about it." He waves the Emerald around a bit. "I need the practice."

"Alright, you go ahead. I'll contact you if I make a breakthrough here."

Sonic smiles and nods. "I'll be back." He holds up the Emerald somewhat overdramatically. "Chaos Control!" He disappears in an unusually bright flash of light.

—–—

 **Angel Island**

The sun has risen considerably over the shrine of the Master Emerald. Already, the air seems to be growing hotter. Sonic suddenly appears, landing in a crouch.

"Well, looks someone's finally figuring out how to make an entrance!"

Sonic looks up to see Knuckles the Echidna standing at the top of the stairs. Sonic chuckles. "You haven't made a good entrance since the day we met. Unless you count that time you popped your head out of the sewer."

Knuckles starts making his way down the steps. "Hey, you weren't even there to see that one."

"Well, if you _want_ to leave yourself with only the one point…"

"Point? So, it's a competition now?" He makes it down the last few steps. "Besides, I made at least three good entrances the day we met. And I think I deserve double points for taking out Super Sonic." They both share a good laugh. "It's good to see you again, Sonic."

"I guess it has been a little while, hasn't it?"

"So what brings you here? I hope you weren't expecting a Birthday present."

"No, it's not that. You see…a lot's changed since we last talked."

"I can tell. You're a lot more confident. Confident enough to use Chaos Control to get all the way here."

"Yeah, but there's more to it than that. Knuckles…what do you know about 'the Controller'?"

Knuckles closes his eyes to think. "The Controller serves to unify the Chaos."

"The chant of the Master Emerald?" Knuckles nods. "So what does that mean to you?"

Knuckles thinks for another moment. "Come with me. There's something you should see." He waves Sonic along, and starts to walk around the side of the shrine. As they walk, Knuckles points out, "What's with that scar?"

Sonic looks to his arm at the relatively small mark Knuckles refers to. "Oh, this? Shadow and I had a bit of a run-in."

"You fought?"

"Not exactly. I sort of…took a bullet for him."

"I don't know why you trust that guy so much."

"I trust him because he's my friend. You should at least understand that much."

"Yeah, whatever." The two have arrived at the back, where an archway in the shrine is revealed, containing a staircase leading deep underground. Knuckles continues down, and Sonic follows, showing relief at getting out of the direct sunlight. As he passes into the shade, the yellow Emerald in his hand shudders slightly.

—–—

"Welcome back…to the Hidden Palace." Knuckles presents the ornate underground structure floored with green tiles and supported by dark blue columns.

"Back…yeah, I remember this place." Sonic pounds a fist into an open hand. "This is where I finally gave you that beating you deserved."

"That was an even match the way I remember it." He walks up to what appears to be the center of the structure, a shrine with one decorated pedestal large enough to fit the full-sized Master Emerald, surrounded by seven more only slightly smaller.

Sonic continues to reminisce. "This is where you were keeping the Master Emerald before Eggman took it." Knuckles nods. "But…what are all the other stands for?"

"They're for the Chaos Emeralds."

"The Chaos Emeralds? You're kidding, right?" Sonic walks up to one of the pedestals to demonstrate. He gives it a good look over, then simply holds his yellow Emerald up slightly above it. The size difference is quite profound. "See? These things could each fit their own Master Emerald, this thing might get lost if I drop it in there."

"You don't see me chuckling. This is no joke. The ancient people didn't make them that size for nothing."

"Is there a point you're trying to prove here?"

"Yeah. The ancient people knew far better than we do. What was fact for them has been lost and twisted over the ages. Like what happened with the legend of the Controller."

"So there's a legend?"

Knuckles nods, and starts moving again. He leads Sonic to an ancient-looking, somewhat abstract mural. It depicts a hedgehog covered in a golden light, facing off against the head and torso of a giant man with a large nose and mustache, holding the Master Emerald. Knuckles doesn't have to say anything.

Sonic wordlessly points to the hedgehog on the mural, then over the man, then back to the hedgehog. "Uh…that's me."

"Makes a lot more sense in hindsight, doesn't it? The Master Emerald showed the ancient people many visions of potential calamities to come. All of them were drawn on murals, many of which lie in this very palace."

"What do the markings on the top and bottom mean?"

"They're written in the ancient language of the Echidnas. Roughly translated, it says… 'In the face of calamity, the Controller will be blessed by the sacred light.'" Sonic nods. "Traditional interpretation holds…that the Master Emerald itself is the Controller."

"Well that doesn't make any sense. You said it yourself, the Controller unifies the Chaos Emeralds. The Master Emerald doesn't bring the other Emeralds together, it only nullifies their power."

"Exactly. Which is why I disagree with the traditional interpretation. I've always believed that the Controller…is a person."

Sonic lets out a sarcastic, "Oh, really?"

"Sonic, this going to sound crazy, but I think that _you_ are the Controller." Sonic can no longer contain his laughter. "Hey, what's so funny?"

"You're slow as ever, Knuckles. I figured out that much six months ago!"

"Well if you already knew that, what'd you come here for!?"

Sonic thinks about that for a moment. "I guess…ever since I learned about who I really am, I've been feeling…lost. Like I should know exactly what I'm doing, except that I don't. I asked Shadow for help, but he's…well, he's Shadow. I guess I came here hoping for some wisdom from the ancient people. Something to let me know that I'm on the right track."

Knuckles nods. "If there's one thing this place has plenty of, it's wisdom. Let me show you some of the other murals." He starts to lead Sonic off. "There's one about a dragon destined to destroy the world that might interest you." As they start to walk off, a drop of light leaps from the Emerald in Sonic's hand to the mural they had been examining. Neither of the two notice. The light spreads out and dissolves into the depiction of Eggman's robot. Then the robot's hand reaches out of the mural.

—–—

Knuckles leads Sonic up the last few steps of the outside shrine. The morning has progressed close to noon, and the sun is brighter than ever. "So, did you find what you were looking for?"

Sonic sighs. "I don't know, maybe? I feel like I'm leaving with more questions than I started with."

"Well, a bunch of ancient prophecy mumbo jumbo will do that to you. If you wouldn't mind some advice…don't worry about it."

"Don't worry about it? I learn that I'm supposed to be some sort of chosen one, and you expect me to just ignore it?"

"Not exactly." He points to the Master Emerald they've arrived at. "Believe it or not, I know what it's like to have a destiny with no one there to show the way. On some days it can really tear you up, not knowing if you're doing your job right or not. So trust me, the best thing for it is to do whatever feels right to you. If you really are the chosen one, then the right thing to do has to be whatever it is that you do."

Sonic thinks on that for a while. "I…I guess you're right. Thanks, Knuckles. I knew I could count on you."

"I know you like to put everything on your shoulders these days, but don't be afraid to call if you ever need me. I've been itching for some real action."

"I don't do the solo act anymore. That was the old me. I haven't been making friends so I could ignore them when I need them most. I'll be sure to–"

"Look out!" Knuckles shoves Sonic aside and delivers a powerful punch to the sudden assailant, a creature that can only be described as a mural come to life. It bears a clear resemblance to Eggman's Master Emerald-stealing mech as seen in the Hidden Palace mural, cartoonish proportions and all. However, it is made of a golden, glowing material, almost like solidified light. It explodes into liquid from the force of Knuckles' punch.

"What the heck was that!?"

"I don't know, but it brought friends!" Just as Knuckles says, similar cartoonish light creatures crawl onto the top platform of the shrine from all sides. Most of them are of unfamiliar shape, though one type of creature appears vaguely similar to a shrunken Perfect Chaos.

Sonic and Knuckles stand back to back as the creatures draw in. "Get ready!" They take fighting stances.

"Bet I can take out more than you can."

"Oh, it's on!" Sonic dashes in for his first strike at one of the creatures, then zips in a flash to the next before the first is finished exploding.

More of them seem to be targeting Knuckles, swarming at him from all sides. Each one is easily dealt with with a single punch, and Knuckles skillfully takes out many with few wasted movements.

As Sonic fights, Emerald in hand, a large amount of the liquid light drops away from the gem and onto the floor, escaping Sonic's notice. It begins to crawl towards the Master Emerald at the center of the shrine.

Knuckles takes out the last of his assailants, and turns to see the golden fluid inching closer to his Emerald. "Oh no you don't!" He readies another punch as he leaps towards the Emerald.

Sonic sees in time to groan, "Not again!"

Knuckles slams down onto the golden slime, causing it to explode just like the solid creatures. He raises a fist triumphantly. "That makes twenty-one."

Sonic snaps a finger in defeat. "Drats! I only got twenty. You know that means I'll be wanting a rematch. That was a pretty nice last shot there."

"Were you expecting something else?"

"For a minute there it looked like you were going to shatter the Emerald again."

"Shatter it? What, do you think I do that just for fun?"

"Actually…" Knuckles glares at Sonic. "Emergencies only. Got it. But it looks like someone's after it now. How're you gonna keep it safe?"

"There's no safer place than right here, where I can keep an eye on it. I'm counting on you to figure out who's doing this, and put a stop to them. You can handle that, right, O mighty Controller?"

"Count on it, O mighty Guardian. I don't know who's doing this, but I know where to start looking."

"I guess you should get going, then. But first…" Knuckles pulls out the blue Chaos Emerald. "I imagine you'll probably be needing this. Think of it as a Birthday present."

Sonic takes it happily. "Popular gift this year. I won't let it go to waste."

"Good luck."

Sonic nods in farewell. "Chaos Control!"

—–—

 **Mystic Ruins**

Sonic reappears back in the center of Tails' workshop. "I'm back."

Tails looks up from the screen of the scanning machine. "Sonic! How'd your visit with Knuckles go?"

"That's what I wanted to ask you about. Have there been any unusual readings from the Moonstone over the past hour or so? Like a spike in energy, or…something?"

Tails looks back to the console. "No, I don't think so. It's been repeating this same precise pattern all morning. Why do you ask?"

"Knuckles and I were attacked by a bunch of walking cartoons. Never seen anything like it, so I thought it might have something to do with this."

Tails shakes his head. "If the Moonstone had anything to do with it, there was certainly no indication of it here."

Sonic nods. "Any progress on translating that pattern?"

"Take a look for yourself." Tails moves aside and indicates for Sonic to look at the console. "I've labeled each wavelength with a letter, A, B, C, and D, and they're listed out here, in order." Sonic takes a look. The code, continuously growing larger, seems entirely random, besides the occasional appearance of long chains of 'A's.

"Doesn't look familiar to me."

"It can't be binary or morse, because those work in twos, not fours. I've compared it to every written and spoken language on record, but nothing comes even close to matching."

Sonic takes a step back to think. "What if…what if it's not a language? Maybe it's like a…diagram, or a mural. Like it's trying to represent something, not to say something."

This intrigues Tails. "A diagram…a _genetic_ diagram, Sonic, you're a genius!" He starts rapidly inputting commands into the console, and ABCD becomes AGTC.

"Well, I don't know about _genius_ , but…"

"It's so obvious, I can't believe I didn't see it before! This isn't a message, it's DNA!"

"So that leaves a new question. Why is the Moonstone transmitting genetic code?"

Tails immediately stops his console work to ponder the new question. "Sonic…didn't you say that the Moonstone was…calling to you?" Sonic nods. "Sonic, I need a DNA sample, a piece of fur or something."

"Uh…okay." Sonic reaches behind his head, and plucks a quill to give to Tails.

Tails drops the quill into an analyzer on the machine, and almost instantly sees the results in a new line of genetic code on the screen. "Just a moment to compare, and…" The screen starts to blink. "…it's a 100% match. The Moonstone is transmitting an exact replica of your DNA."

"That's…kinda creepy. You think I should touch it?"

"No! That's a worse idea now than ever!"

"Alright. So…what should we do?"

Tails thinks about that a while longer. "Something we can do under more controlled conditions. DNA works in complementary pairs. If we were to artificially transmit the entire complementary sequence…who knows?"

Sonic nods. "Let's give it a try."

—–—

The Moonstone has been placed in the center of a whitewashed room, sealed on all sides. Looking down through a thickly reinforced window above are Sonic and Tails, both wearing large goggles. Tails seems to be working on a few different machines. "Everything is just about ready. Sensors are recording, transmission is standing by."

Sonic nods. "Sounds like we're good to go."

"Starting transmission…now!" Tails presses a button. Immediately, the Moonstone inside the sealed chamber begins to glow brighter. "Energy output readings are increasing, Moonstone transmission pattern continuing as expected!" The gem continues to glow brighter and brighter, illuminating the chamber with a rainbow of color. The light grows bright enough to completely conceal the gem itself. Even with their goggles, Sonic and Tails can barely look into the light. "Energy output surpassing measurable levels! It's off the charts, Sonic!"

"Do you think we should stop!?"

"The artificial transmission's already completed! There's no stopping now!" The light grows to unimaginable intensity, covering absolutely everything.

The light begins to subside. "Energy output readings are dropping. Sensors are showing…no way…"

The light subsides entirely. Lying on the floor of the chamber is not a gemstone, but a hedgehog.

 **To be continued…**

* * *

 **Happy 26th Anniversary, Sonic the Hedgehog! This wasn't exactly meant to be an anniversary special, but it just so happened to work out that I wanted the episode take place in early summer, and that I would be publishing it around the same time.  
**

 **By the way, today, June 23rd, is also this story's one-year anniversary, since it was first published on Sonic's birthday last year. I was hoping to get a little more that 20 episodes in a year, but I've been very happy with everything that's happened so far.**

 **Even though I can't really say that I'm a new writer anymore, I still want your feedback! I want to know as much as I possibly can about how to keep delivering quality content, and that means knowing what my strengths and weaknesses are from an outside perspective. Please, leave reviews! I need you! And, thank you for being a reader! Here's to another great year of Sonic and Chaos!  
**


	25. S0 E21: Life and Death

**Several hours earlier…**

Eggman crouches over the hunk of meteorite at the center of the crater. "You're certain this was the source of the readings? It's just an old rock!"

Orbot answers from next to the parked Eggmobile, "Yes, sir. There was a large spike in Chaos energy readings at this location when the meteorite struck the earth." He and Cubot both join Eggman at the crater.

"Then why is there nothing here?"

Cubot picks up the rock. "Maybe it's just hidden underneath!"

Orbot tries to take it away. "Put that down, you might damage it!"

"Give it back, I saw it first!"

"Actually, the Doctor saw it first!" The two continue to struggle back and forth, until the rock breaks in two, causing them both to drop the pieces.

Cubot looks up to Eggman, and points to his companion. "Orbot did it."

Eggman is too distracted examining the newly exposed sides of the meteor. One of them holds a glowing drop of light. "What's this…?" He reaches out for it. Suddenly, the drop leaps from the rock to Eggman's hand. "Argh! What is this thing!? Get it off me!"

"Oh no, the Doctor's under attack!"

"What do we do!?"

Orbot and Cubot run around in senseless panic as Eggman tries to flick the substance off. After a few tries, he is successful, and the light splatters back onto the ground. Almost instantly, it starts to bubble and increase rapidly in size. It quickly takes on a large humanoid shape, somewhat similar to Eggman himself. But then it starts to thin out into more normal human proportions.

Eggman takes a step back to look at the back of the new person standing in front of him. He wears clothing similar to Eggman's, though colored only yellow, white, and gold. Eggman questions, "And just who are you supposed to be?"

The person turns to face Eggman. He has no mustache, but a full head of blond hair. Despite bearing a vague resemblance to Eggman, he might be described as handsome. He speaks, "Your heart is disgusting."

"What!?"

"Unfortunately, I have need of this…unsightly form."

"I'll have you know, I am Doctor Eggman, world-renowned scientist, and you–"

"I suggest you enjoy your final days in this world, villain. Your kind will soon be obsolete. Now, I really must be on my way. It's vital that I locate the Controller."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 21**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 2: Life and Death**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

As the light subsides, Tails confirms, "Energy output readings are dropping. Sensors are showing…no way…"

The light disappears entirely, to reveal a hedgehog lying on the floor of the empty, sealed chamber. Momentarily, his fur seems to reflect a rainbow of seven different colors, before reverting to just a silvery white. There are five spikes wrapping around his head, which come out at an upwards angle before angling straight downwards. Someone who has seen into the future would know this creature of the Moonstone as Chaos the Hedgehog.

"There's a person in there!"

The Moonstone hedgehog starts to get up, clutching his head. As he does, it can be seen that the Moonstone is still there, embedded in his chest. Sonic looks at him with wonder. For the first time, the hedgehog looks up to see Sonic and Tails through the window. Suddenly, his fur shifts from white to a sickly green. In a surprising—though not quite Sonic-level—burst of speed, he zips to the opposite wall and starts pounding on it with his hand.

Tails shouts to Sonic with fear, "Sonic, something's wrong! He's in pain!"

Sonic has already started running out of the room. He shouts back, "I'm on it!"

"Sonic, no! Don't–" He runs after him.

The Moonstone hedgehog runs from wall to wall, desperately searching for an escape. Suddenly, a door opens from the outside as Sonic enters. "Calm down, I'm here to–"

"Rargh!" The hedgehog's fur again shifts, this time to a deep red, as he charges at Sonic and shoves him aside. He runs out the door.

Tails finally catches up, and sees Sonic sprawled out on the ground. "Sonic, are you alright?"

Sonic starts to get up. "Yeah…he's pretty strong."

"Why'd you let him out?"

"I thought that… Don't worry, I'm going after him." He stands the rest of the way, then runs out the door after the escaped hedgehog.

Tails sighs. Then he runs back up to the room they had been watching from. He presses a button on a storage container, and a drawer slides out. He takes a box out of the drawer, and opens it. Four unusually dim yellow Chaos Emeralds are arrayed inside.

—–—

Sonic makes it to the outside of the clifftop lab in time to see the other hedgehog make an incredible leap, from the cliff all the way to the elevated train tracks that run above. Sonic is impressed. "Nice jump. But you won't get away that easily!" The hedgehog above takes off running in the direction of a tunnel through a cliff, constructed for the train. Sonic takes off in the same direction along the ground. He continues to run up the new cliff as he reaches it, carried all the way up the wall to level of the train tracks. He hops off, and lands directly in the path of the other hedgehog. "Hold it, I just want to talk to you!"

The Moonstone hedgehog turns and runs the other way.

"Hey, come back here!" Sonic takes off after him.

The other hedgehog looks back, his will to flee redoubled at seeing that he is still being pursued. His fur shifts from red to yellow. As he runs, he raises up a contorted hand, which becomes filled with a yellow energy. "Hah!" He hurls back the energy as a projectile.

Sonic barely sidesteps out of the way of the attack, continuing to run. "That was a Chaos Spear!" He dodges another one. The Moonstone hedgehog starts rapid-firing as many Chaos Spears as he can throw.

Tired of dodging, Sonic goes on the offensive. "I don't want to hurt you, but you're not leaving me any choice!" He leaps up, and goes in for a spin attack.

The other hedgehog throws his hands to either side, and a barrier of yellow energy forms around him. Sonic bounces harmlessly off of it, and gets knocked to the floor, as the other hedgehog continues to run down the tracks.

Sonic quickly gets back up, and takes off at top speed. He quickly catches up. As the Moonstone hedgehog sees that he's still being followed, his fur reverts to its red color, as he grows even more enraged. He starts to take on a sparking red aura. Sonic thinks, _"Oh no!"_ He skids to a stop to avoid what's coming.

"Rargh!" The hedgehog unleashes a fiery red explosion in a powerful Chaos Blast.

Sonic watches as the explosion destroys every inch of train track that it touches not far in front of him. When the explosion clears, the hedgehog is nowhere to be seen. A fair portion of the elevated track has sunken into the sea far below, creating a gap too large to jump over. Sonic taps his communicator. "Tails, you there?"

"I hear you. What's your status?"

"I lost him. He's heading towards Station Square, I'll try to find him there. He took out some of the track, so I need you to make sure that's taken care of before the next train comes by."

"I'm on it."

"He's strong, Tails. Really strong."

"So find him before he hurts someone!"

"Right. Chaos Control!"

—–—

 **Station Square**

The Moonstone hedgehog stomps through the main road of a familiar part of town, returned to his sickly green color. Every passing sound turns his head in an involuntary flinch. A taxi screeches to halt as it nearly runs him over, to the sound of a loud horn. The driver sticks his head out the window. "Get out of the road, ya Sonic wannabe!" The hedgehog's fur turns red again as he seems prepared to attack the automobile with the full force of his strength. But it drives around him before he gets the chance.

Suddenly, the hedgehog shouts a growl out into the air, "Grargh!" He collapses to his knees, clutching his head, as his fur turns dark blue. His shoulders heave as if he were sobbing.

A familiar voice questions, "Hey…are you alright?" The hedgehog looks up, tears in his eyes, to see Amy Rose. "Please, don't be sad. Everything's going to be okay." She offers both of her hands forward. "My name is Amy Rose. Are you another one of Sonic's friends?"

His fur turns white again. "Sssaaahhhh…neek?"

"It sounds like the sun might be getting to you. Please, let me take you inside." She takes his hands this time. For the first time, his fur fades to a soft, rich purple.

"Amy, get away from him!" Amy takes a step back in surprise, and Sonic lands right in front of her. "He's dangerous, stay back!"

The Moonstone hedgehog has stepped back as well, his fur returned to yellow.

"You won't get away this time!" Sonic starts to charge in for an attack, but Amy grabs him by the arm.

"Sonic, stop! Don't hurt him!"

Sonic tries to tear his arm free. "Let go of me, Amy!"

"He's just confused, he doesn't want to hurt anyone!"

As they argue, the Moonstone hedgehog leaps to the top of a tall building in a single bound. From there, he leaps far off into the distance.

Amy finally lets go.

"You let him get away."

"I wasn't going to let you hurt him."

"Amy, he already almost destroyed me."

"Well maybe that's because you're trying to attack him!"

Sonic turns and starts to walk off. "We'll talk about this later."

"And just where do you think you're going?"

"After him."

Amy runs to catch up with him. "Well, then I'm coming too."

"Ha! Only if you can keep up!" Sonic takes off running.

"Oh no you don't! I won't get left out this time!"

—–—

The handsome blond-haired man appears to be tied to a chair. Eggman moves right up to his face. "I'll ask you one more time. Who _are_ you?" They are in an interior room of some sort of base, with no visible windows.

The man sighs. "With every passing moment, you further prove your unworthiness, villain. But, if I must, I will explain to you. You can call me…Lumis. I am a Lord of Chaos, sent to this realm on a very important mission. To help the Controller eradicate the Darkness."

"You expect me to believe that!? What kind of fool do you take me for?"

"A particularly disgusting fool, as a matter of fact. Now, I highly suggest that you allow me to leave."

"Ha! You aren't leaving until I figure out what you _really_ are." Eggman promptly leaves the room.

Lumis closes his eyes and thinks, _"I can feel the other one drawing near. The Controller is following him. I must lead them here."_

—–—

A colorful butterfly flutters past the afternoon sun. The Moonstone hedgehog watches it with wonder. His fur, like the sky, is a bright cyan-blue. Cautiously, he reaches up towards the insect. It settles down onto the tip of his finger. Slowly, his fur fades again to the same soft purple seen before. He lifts his finger slightly, and the butterfly takes off again. He smiles. Then a bird swoops down from the sky, and snatches the insect from the air.

For just a moment, the hedgehog turns sickly green again as he steps back in fear. But then, like his fur, his expression shifts slowly from fear, to a complete, utter calm. He turns a pure, silvery white to match. He looks up to the sun in the sky, and has to shield his eyes from the light. He doesn't seem to notice the cartoonish creature of solid light seeming to rise up from the grassy, flower-covered ground behind him. Until several more begin to rise.

He slowly turns to face them as he turns an intense, fiery red. He charges with a savage roar, and each one explodes at his strike. More continue to rise as he fights, and he is soon completely surrounded. As he realizes that he has nowhere to turn, his face takes on a look of fear, and his fur turns its sickly green to match. They start to close in. One, shaped like Eggman's Doomsday mech, draws much closer, reaching for the Moonstone embedded in his chest.

"Stay away from him!" A massive hammer comes down on the creature, obliterating it like the others. It's owner, Amy, picks it back up and gives the hedgehog a smile, before turning her attention to the swarm of creatures.

Sonic comes in a moment later, grumbling, "Amy!"

Swinging her hammer ferociously, she answers back, "I'm not going to let them hurt him!"

Sonic speeds through a group of the fragile creatures, destroying them all. He grunts in acknowledgement of what Amy said, but doesn't respond.

The Moonstone hedgehog looks to the other two with confusion as they fight for him. Then he turns a deep yellow as he takes on an expression of resolve. He rejoins the fight with the other two hedgehogs.

Amy yells out as she fights, "What are these things, anyway?"

"I don't know, but they were going after the Master Emerald before."

"What're they doing here?"

"How should I know?" As Sonic momentarily turns to look at Amy, a creature leaps at him from behind. The Moonstone hedgehog takes it out with a Chaos Spear. There doesn't seem to be any more around. Sonic turns towards him awkwardly. "Umm…thanks?"

The moment is interrupted as more creatures begin to rise. Rather than surround them, the rising creatures form a rough line off into the distance. Without hesitation, the Moonstone hedgehog goes on the offensive once more. Sonic looks to Amy. "Uh…follow his lead, I guess. Just…don't let him out of your sight." With that settled, they go in after him.

—–—

 **Mt. Lux**

Amy swipes her hammer at the final creature. The three all look up to see where they've ended up. They seem to have arrived at a giant metal door built into the foot of a tall, yellowish mountain. A large Eggman insignia is emblazoned on the door's front. Sonic comments, "Well, he isn't very subtle, is he? I guess we know who's behind this."

"I'm betting you want to go inside?"

Sonic nods. "If Eggman's up to something…better to stop him before it gets too far."

"Then how do we get in?"

Sonic pulls out the yellow Emerald. "Well that's an easy one. I'll just–"

There is a loud crunch as the Moonstone hedgehog grabs the door, and rips it from its hinges. He tosses it aside as if it weighed no more than a few pounds. Then he turns his attention to Sonic, noticing the Emerald in his hand. He starts to scowl at it. Then he starts to reach a hand out for it.

Sonic snatches it away. "Hey! Hands off!"

The hedgehog looks slowly away from the gem, back to the interior of the Eggman base. Then he begins to walk inside.

Sonic follows, and indicates for Amy to do the same. As he crosses into the darkness of the base, the Emerald once again trembles in his hand. This time, Sonic seems to notice it as he holds it up to his face for a closer look. But the shuddering has stopped and it behaves as normal.

"So, after all of that about this guy being dangerous…" Sonic realizes how far ahead Amy has gotten as she starts to speak, and breaks into a quick jog to catch up. "…now you're just letting him lead the way?"

"If you're gonna say 'I told you so,' then just say it. You were right, okay? I still don't know who this guy is, but he sure seems like he knows what he's doing. Whatever happened before, that must've been a misunderstanding."

"So does 'this guy' have a name?" The question is directed more towards the hedgehog himself. But there is no answer.

Sonic reiterates, "Hey guy, do you have a name?" He continues to walk on ahead, a constant scowl on his yellow face. "Well, if he's going after Eggman, he can't be all bad, right?"

"Maybe this should teach you something about jumping to conclusions about people."

Sonic doesn't seem to notice the deeper meaning behind her words. "I don't need a life lesson right now, Amy. Let's just take care of this."

The Moonstone hedgehog suddenly stops, staring at a door. He lets out an audible grunt.

"Is there something in there?"

In response, he once again crunches a hand around the door, and rips it away.

On the other side, tied to a chair, sits Lumis. "I was beginning to wonder how long–"

"Rargh!" The Moonstone hedgehog leaps at Lumis as his fur turns blood red. Sonic and Amy both hesitate for a moment in surprise.

"Don't just stand there, get this creature off of me!"

The two quickly move in to restrain the hedgehog by each of his arms. They pull him away from Lumis as he struggles to tear himself free, though he doesn't attempt to harm either of them. Finally, as he is forced down to his knees by their combined effort, he stops resisting, as fur settles down to a much softer red.

Sonic looks to Amy. "Can you hold him here?" She nods. He lets go of the hedgehog and moves to free Lumis. "Are you–"

The hedgehog growls and jerks an arm as Sonic begins work on Lumis' ropes, but Amy keeps hold of him.

Sonic clears his throat and continues, "Are you alright?"

As the ropes drop, Lumis stands and starts to dust himself off. "I'll be quite fine."

"Alright. So who are you, and how did you get here?"

"I'll be glad to illuminate you on the situation. _After_ we get out of this…dismal place."

Amy questions, "What about him?" The hedgehog jerks an arm again.

Lumis begins to smooth out the wrinkles in his clothing. "If you're looking for a suggestion, I would advise you leave it here. Trust me, it isn't worth the trouble."

Amy shouts, "No way! We–"

Sonic interrupts, "Don't worry, Amy. We're not leaving anything. This guy is still my problem. I guess…I was right about him after all." This seems to disappoint Amy.

Lumis shifts impatiently. "We really must be going."

Sonic nods. "Right." He leads the way out.

Waiting for them on the other side is a massive mech, Eggman sitting at its head. "Trying to steal my prisoner, are you?" The mech, with a body shaped much like his usual robots, has large bat-like wings, long pointed horns and tail, and rather well-built arms holding a deadly-looking pitchfork. "It will be your last mistake."

Suddenly, the Moonstone hedgehog turns and runs off in the opposite direction. Sonic notices after a moment, but Amy is already running after him. "Don't worry, I've got him!"

Lumis looks to Sonic. "If you wouldn't mind, Controller, I believe this villain must be dealt with."

"You know what I am?"

"I know many things. Now go!"

Eggman shouts, "Enough chatter! Egg Demon, attack!" The mech stabs with its giant weapon, and Sonic barely dives out of the way. Then he dashes towards it.

—–—

The Moonstone hedgehog knocks down the door into what appears to be a research laboratory. In the center is a very large and complicated machine which appears to be running. The purple Chaos Emerald is inserted on one side.

Amy steps in behind him. "What is that thing?"

The hedgehog slowly steps closer to the machine. He appears to be shuddering, as his fur again turns red as fire. The Emerald begins to strobe with a highly unusual pattern of light.

"That doesn't look right…"

The whirring of the machine grows considerably louder as a dismal purple light begins to form on the opposite side of the machine from the Emerald. In the center of the light, a group of glowing particles begin to cluster together, forming into a solid shape. As the light begins to clear, the form of a dim purple Emerald is revealed.

"Is that…a fake Emerald?"

The hedgehog's shuddering grows to uncontrollable levels, as if moments away from exploding. But then, the fake gem crumbles away to dust as quickly as it formed.

"Pretty bad fake, I guess."

The hedgehog's anger subsides slightly. But he still plunges a hand into the machine, and rips out a handful of wires and circuitry.

Amy joins him with a powerful hammer swing. "I agree. Let's smash this thing."

—–—

Sonic lands a solid spin attack on the Egg Demon's cockpit, cracking the glass, and gets launched back to the ground. Eggman shouts, "You'll pay for that, little rat! Void Beam, fire!" The mech unleashes from its chest what appears to be a focused beam of shadowy energy. Sonic quickly realizes that there's no time to avoid it.

"Behind me!" Lumis stands tall in front of Sonic. "Chaos Shield!" He pushes his hands forwards, and generates a large barrier of golden energy in front of them. The Void Beam impacts the Chaos Shield, but cannot break through.

Sonic notes, "Just like that hedgehog did…"

The beam ends, and Lumis dissipates the shield. "Now get back in there!"

Sonic nods, and dashes back into action. The Egg Demon swipes its long tail, but Sonic jumps, lands on top of it, and springs off, launching into attack range. He delivers another strong strike, shattering the cockpit. As he lands, the mech becomes wracked with small explosions.

Lumis doesn't seem particularly impressed by the spectacle. "Well done. Let's go."

"Go? What about Amy? She's still back there!"

Lumis groans. "Fine. We can get the girl first. Lead the way." Sonic starts moving, and Lumis follows behind.

Eggman shouts from his ruined machine, "Oh no you don't! Get back here! I'm not finished with you yet!" His shouts are ignored.

—–—

The Moonstone hedgehog picks up the real Emerald from the rubble of the machine. He stares into it and takes a deep breath, finally relaxing. His fur softens to a clean white as he does. He continues to stare at it. He opens his mouth as if wanting to speak, but no words come out. But after a moment, a word, spoken by a chorus, echoes in his head. _"Who…?"_

Amy puts a hand on his shoulder. "What is it? What do you want to say?"

Just as last time, the hedgehog struggles to make a sound. He breathes loudly several times, trying to approximate the "H" sound. Finally, he manages to repeat, "Hhhoooo?"

"Who?" She giggles a bit. "I already told you. My name is Amy."

He closes his eyes, and shakes his head. Then he puts a hand on the Moonstone in his chest. "Whooo?"

"You…you're asking who _you_ are? You've lost your memories?"

For a moment, he seems to feel relieved at finally being understood. Then he tenses up and turns his head to the door, as his fur turns a striking yellow.

Amy, realizing what it might mean, puts an arm out in front of him. "Please stay calm. We can't help you if you can't control yourself."

He hears her words, and relaxes slightly, still keeping his eyes firmly locked on the door. A moment later, Sonic and Lumis walk in. "Amy, there you are." He looks at the rubble of the machine. "What's going on here?"

"It looks like Eggman is trying to create fake Emeralds." She adds proudly, "I think we set him back a bit."

Lumis suddenly demands, "Did you say _fake_ Emeralds?" Not waiting for an answer, he kneels down and scoops up a handful of the purple dust that the fake had crumbled into. After a moment, he starts to flick it away as if it were something foul. "No wonder this place feels so repulsive." He looks over, and for the first time notices the Moonstone hedgehog, glaring at him intensely, still holding the real Emerald in one hand. "You're letting _it_ hold the Emerald? I suggest you take it away before it hurts someone. Like me."

Amy looks somewhat offended, but Sonic gives her a look telling her to listen. She sighs, but then gives the hedgehog a smile. "Hey…do you think you could give me that Emerald?" He glances at her a few times, but doesn't want to take his gaze off of Lumis. "Please. We just want to help you." Slowly, hesitantly, he turns over the Emerald, and places it in her hand. "Thank you."

"My my, it's almost like you've trained it." The hedgehog starts to growl, but Amy calms him down with a hand. "Now, can we _please_ get out of here?"

A familiar voice answers, "You aren't going anywhere, this time!" All around them, metal cage bars suddenly shoot out of the ground, trapping them on all sides.

"What's this!?"

A monitor descends out of an opening in the ceiling, showing a display of Eggman. "You should have cut your losses, hedgehog. Now, you're _all_ my prisoners. Oh ho ho!"

Thinking fast, Sonic throws a hand up to one ear. "Tails, this is Sonic! We've been captured, we need help! We're at a base built inside of a mountain outside of Station Square! Bring backup!"

Eggman shouts, "I don't think so!" He can be seen on the monitor slamming his finger on a button.

Tails' voice responds "Soni–" before getting cut off.

"Your communications have been jammed. Now, you all be good little prisoners, and wait for your guards to escort you to your cells." The monitor deactivates and retracts into its place in the ceiling.

Sonic growls. "Good luck, Tails."

 **To be continued…**


	26. S0 E22: Day and Night

**Mystic Ruins**

 **Tails' Laboratory**

Tails works away at the console of the machine that had been examining the Moonstone, apparently still having more data to analyze. Suddenly, his communicator beeps. "Tails, this is Sonic! We've been captured, we need help! We're at a base built inside of a mountain outside of Station Square! Bring backup!"

His hand springs to the device to respond, "Sonic, I hear you, is everything alright!? Are you hurt?" He waits a moment. "Sonic, respond!" He growls at the lack of response. Then he gets moving, sprinting away at his top speed. But he skids to a stop as he passes a storage container. He frantically opens a drawer and pulls a box out of it. He takes the lid off of the box to check on the four fake yellow Emeralds still inside. Then he shuts the box and runs off with it.

He quickly arrives at his underground hangar, and powers on the old, flickering lights. He runs around the _Tornado_ to the front propellor, and begins unscrewing the cap. Once it's off, he removes an Emerald from the box, and places it into the plane's newly-revealed compartment. He screws the cap back on, and swings around into the pilot's seat in one fluid motion. He reaches down for a pair of goggles, which he puts on. He presses a button to ignite the plane's engine. "I'm coming, Sonic."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 22**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 3: Day and Night**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

 **Mt. Lux**

 **Eggman's Secret Base**

Lumis has been once again tied down to his chair, while Sonic and Amy have each been bound, standing, to opposite walls. Lumis seems to be in the middle of ranting to them, "I hope you are both quite happy with yourselves! Now we're _all_ stuck here."

Sonic doesn't seem particularly happy. "Remind me why I rescued you again?"

"You call that a rescue? I could have broken myself free with more success."

"Oh really? Then please, be my guest. No one's stopping you."

"Unfortunately, _you_ are the reason I need to be in this realm in the first place. Really, I was expecting more out of the Controller."

"Well, since you seem to know so much about me already, why don't you tell us who in the world _you_ are already!?"

"Very well, very well. You can call me…Doctor Lumis."

Amy questions with extreme doubt, "Doctor?"

"…Forgive me, this body has a surprising effect on my way of thinking."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"Hmm…perhaps I should start from the beginning. As you know, this realm is overseen by the beings known as the Lords of Chaos."

Sonic nods. "That's right. What about them?"

"Some time ago, the Lords discovered a sort of…aberration, in the natural course of events."

"Aberration? What does that mean?"

"Simply that the future has been altered in a manner which could not originally be accounted for. A new series of events which will eventually send the entire world spiraling into Darkness. Events including your own death."

"How do you know all of this?"

"In order to prevent this catastrophe, the Lords of Chaos agreed that an intervention had to be made. A single voice was selected to do so."

"You're saying that you…"

"I am a Lord of Chaos."

—–—

 **Angel Island**

Knuckles looks up as the _Tornado_ descends down to the stretch of land in front of the shrine. "Two visitors in one day? So much for a secluded hiding spot."

Tails hops out of the plane. "Knuckles, get in! Sonic's in trouble!"

"Get in? Tails, I can't just leave the Master Emerald here unguarded!"

"Then take it with you, come on! We have to hurry!"

"I…you…argh, fine!"

While Knuckles retrieves the Master Emerald, Tails pulls out the Emerald case, as well as another device. He opens a panel on the device, and loads the second fake Emerald inside, as it becomes clear what the device is.

"A gun?" Knuckles stands ready, holding the shrunken Master Emerald in his hands. "Isn't that a little…I don't know, not your style?"

"Now's not the time to worry about ' _style_ '. Besides…" Tails suddenly aims the weapon at Knuckles' chest and fires.

"Ah!" The energy blast hits him, but dissolves harmlessly into sparks. "Hey!"

"…This EMP Blaster only affects robots. Now come on!" Tail swings back into the pilot's seat, and puts the goggles back down. Knuckles hops up onto the wing, and the plane takes off.

—–—

"Rargh!" The red-furred Moonstone hedgehog tries to rip free of the shackles binding him to the examination table as Dr. Eggman draws near.

"My, feisty one, aren't you?"

"Grr!" He tugs again.

Eggman leans in over the hedgehog's chest. "That's quite an interesting gem you have there. Mind if I take a look?" He reaches a hand for the Moonstone. The moment he does, the hedgehog starts to writhe and flail as much as his bindings will allow, enough to scare Eggman back a step. "Fine, fine, I'll just observe. Orbot!"

From a nearby console, the robotic servant answers, "Yes sir?"

"What do the readings say?

"Energy output is at least twice as high as a normal Chaos Emerald, sir. But I'm having trouble getting a read on the material. However, I am reading an odd pattern in the energy output."

"Odd? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know, sir."

Eggman tugs on his mustache in curiosity. "Hmm…. Perhaps there was some element of truth to what that Lumis character said."

—–—

Sonic asks, "If you're a Lord of Chaos, what does that make the other guy? Why was he after you?"

Lumis answers, "A fair question, I suppose." He stops to think for a while. "Ten millennia ago…there was a voice, which attempted to subvert the collective will of the others. This Outlaw was punished through silence."

"Silence?"

"Think about it. A being who once existed solely as a voice among a chorus; his voice taken away from him. Forced to be present for every word, every moment, without ever being able to prove that he even exists. For ten thousand years. It is the worst punishment that a being such as I could possibly endure."

"So you're saying that this…Outlaw…"

"When the chosen voice was sent to this realm, it left an opening for the Outlaw to follow. And so he did."

Amy's voice suddenly outbursts, "No! I won't believe that!"

"Excuse me!?"

"I won't believe that he's a criminal! He's lost, and confused, and alone, and he doesn't even know who _he_ is!"

"Well, ten millennia spent as prisoner in one's own mind will do that to someone. Quite frankly, I don't care what happens to him. There are far more important concerns to deal with."

—–—

The _Tornado_ soars through the developing cloud cover that shades the ground below from the intense summer heat. Tails glances over at Knuckles, still crouched on the wing, before returning his attention to piloting. After a few moments, he glances over again.

"Would you quit staring at me like that!?"

"Sorry…" Tails tightens his grip on the controls, and locks his gaze forwards. But after another few moments, he steals another glance.

"Alright, you haven't been able to keep your eyes off of me this whole trip. What's up!?"

"It's just…that's where Sonic usually flies."

"Well, Sonic isn't here, is he?"

"That's the problem!"

"What, I'm not good enough company for you!?"

"Well, maybe you aren't!" Both drop into silence as they take in what was just said.

Slowly, Knuckles climbs down sideways into the back seat, relaxing with his head and feet still well outside of the vehicle. "Let's just get this over with."

Tails stares ahead at the mountain peak in view up ahead, sticking up above the clouds. "We're getting close. Preparing to descend."

"Yeah, whatever."

Tails dips the plane down into the clouds. After a few moments of flying blind through a thick fog, they come out on the other side, in full view of the mountain. "There it is. Now I just need to find a place to land, and–" Several small sections of the mountain face suddenly begin sliding away, revealing large defense turrets, which immediately open fire. "We're under fire, hold on tight!"

Knuckles doesn't open his eyes. "What's the big–"

"Taking evasive action!" Tails throws the _Tornado_ into a wide barrel roll, narrowly avoiding the first laser blast, and causing Knuckles to flail as he nearly falls out of the plane.

As Knuckles climbs back the proper way into his seat, he shouts, "You call that flying!? Are you _trying_ to get me launched out!?"

"The mountain has a powerful defense system! It's all I can do to keep us from getting shot out of the sky!" Tails pulls the plane into a tight somersault, barely avoiding another blast. "Firing back, now!" He unleashes a volley of laser fire of his own, strafing the side of the mountain and destroying a turret in its path. "Yeah, I got one!"

Knuckles shouts back sarcastically, "Only a dozen more to go! Tails, you–" He gets interrupted as another tight roll pins him to his seat. He resumes, "You can't destroy them all! You have to find a place to land before we get shot down!"

"There's no way I can land with so many of them targeting us! We have to take them out first, before–" A turret blast shreds through the left wing, leaving it barely hanging on to the rest of the plane. Immediately, the plane begins losing altitude, and starts to dip towards the ground.

"We're hit, we're hit!"

"Don't worry, I can still make an emergency landing!"

'Landing!? Tails, we're heading straight for ground and gaining speed! If you don't want to go splat on the ground down there, you have to eject, now!"

"I can do it! I can!"

"I'm not dying with you here, Tails." Knuckles climbs up to the edge of the tailspinning plane, and dives out, gently gliding towards the mountainside, leaving Tails completely alone.

"Knuckles…" Tails tightens his grip, and stares defiantly at the ground. But then, he falters. He lets go of the controls, unbuckles his safety belt, and reaches down for his blaster and Emerald case. Then he jumps out as well, twirling his tails to remain aloft above the spot where the _Tornado_ crashes into the ground in a fiery explosion. A light drizzle starts to fall from the clouds.

—–—

Tails and Knuckles walk in silence along the side of the mountain, drenched by the increasing strength of the summer rainstorm. Tails starts to speak up, "Knuckles…I…"

"Let's just find Sonic and get this over with, alright?"

"Yeah…" They continue to walk for a while. They come to a stop at an unhinged metal door lying on the ground, with a massive dent in the middle. They look to the mountain beside them to see the entrance it had been covering. "Well, I guess this is where we go in." Knuckles nods, and they continue inside.

On the other side, they are met by a swarm of Egg Pawns, all weapons pointed at them. Tails shouts, "It's an ambush!" Both heroes dive back to the outside, taking cover on either side of the entryway, narrowly avoiding the first wave of weapon fire. As soon as the fire lets up, Tails leans in and fires his own blaster back, each blast completely disabling any robot it contacts, before being forced to take cover again. "There's too many of them!"

Knuckles starts to crack his fists. "No problem." He charges back into the base, arms up and ready to fight.

"Knuckles, no!" Tails reluctantly runs in after him, skillfully shooting the blaster as he moves.

Happier in the heat of the action, Knuckles goes to work taking out as many robots as he can, as quickly as possible, showing off his strength and expert fighting style. One robot points a weapon at his back.

"Knuckles, look out!" Tails blasts the robot just before it gets its own chance to fire.

Knuckles looks back at Tails just long enough to acknowledge that he was saved, then moves back into the fight.

—–—

Sonic, Amy, and Lumis wait around in silence.

Finally, Amy starts, "You know, Sonic…it's been a long time since we've spent so much time together."

Sonic groans loudly. "Amy, is now really the best time?"

Lumis comments, "Ah, young love. A great source of Light in the Balance…assuming it goes well. To be honest, I can't say that the future I foresee between the two of you is a very happy one."

For entirely different reasons, both Sonic and Amy shout, "Hey!"

"Never mind, never mind, just forget what I said. Please, go back to what you were doing before."

Sonic groans again, but the groan is interrupted by a loud bang.

Amy questions, "What was that?"

Sonic smirks. "That's our backup."

With another loud bang, the newly-replaced door to the room is once again torn from its hinges, sent clattering to the floor. Knuckles stands with a raised fist on the other side. "Someone call for a rescue?"

Tails runs in past him. "Sonic!"

"Tails!" The fox immediately begins work on Sonic's bindings. "How'd you know we were in here?"

Knuckles, in the process of freeing Amy, responds, "Well, uh, I definitely didn't knock down three other doors in the same way as this one. Definitely not."

Tails continues, "This place is crawling with robots, we don't have much time."

Amy, freed and stepping away from her wall, asks, "How do we get out of here if there are so many?"

Sonic has been freed as well. "I could get us all out with Chaos Control, but Eggman took all of our Emeralds."

Tails takes another fake yellow Emerald out of his case and drops it into Sonic's hand. "Not a problem."

"Tails, how did you…" Sonic stares at the dull yellow gem for a moment. "It's a fake. Tails, I thought we–"

"We can talk about it later, right now we need to get out of here!"

"Wait, what about the _Tornado_?"

Tails closes his eyes and shakes his head.

Knuckles interjects, "So who's this guy supposed to be?" He points a thumb at Lumis, still tied in the center of the room.

Lumis responds, "This guy has a name, you know. It's Lumis."

Sonic answers to Knuckles as Amy unties Lumis, "Don't worry, he's a…an ally."

Once again, Lumis gets up and starts to brush himself off, as if dirtied by the ropes. "Now, can we _please_ get out of here? I don't want to spend another second in this rathole."

Amy shouts back, "No way! We have save Emmy!"

Sonic questions with confusion, "Emmy?"

"Well, we have to call him something. There's an Emerald in his chest, isn't there?"

Tails interjects, "Technically, it's a Moonstone."

Knuckles objects, "I thought you said you were the one who named it that! There's nothing technical about it!"

This time, it is Lumis who groans. "Controller, could you, perhaps, convince your little friends to stop babbling so we can leave?"

Sonic answers, "We're not going anywhere until _everyone_ is safe. If you don't want to come with us, you can stay right here." He continues in a mocking tone, "Quite frankly, I don't care what you do."

Lumis sighs. "Given the options, I'll go."

"Good. Then let's get moving, everyone. And Amy…we are _not_ calling him Emmy."

Lumis adds, "I remind you all, he is the Outlaw."

Amy responds to both of them with a "Hmph," as the group progresses out of the room.

—–—

As the group moves through the base, Tails runs a bit to catch up with Knuckles. "Knuckles…I wanted to apologize for what I said before. I don't know what came over me, I guess I was just really worried about Sonic."

Knuckles shakes his head. "No, I'm the one who should be sorry. What was I doing, yelling at a kid like that? I was trying to look cool is what I was doing, and I made a complete fool of myself doing it."

Tails offers his hand. "Still friends?"

Knuckles gladly accepts it, and they shake. "Still friends."

Sonic looks back at them. "Did I miss something?"

The two both chuckle a bit. Tails answers, "Nothing much."

Amy questions, "Sonic, how do you know where we're going? We've passed a lot of doors already."

"I know that he's this way. I can feel it."

Tails, Amy, and Knuckles all give Sonic a confused look. Lumis adds, "He is correct. I feel it as well." They shrug it off.

After a while, Knuckles comments, "You know, this place's been strangely–" He is cut off as an entire floor panel for some distance in front of them slides open, and a platform crammed full of robots is raised from underneath. "…quiet." Tails glares at Knuckles angrily, as if he had jinxed it.

Sonic quickly has the situation analyzed. "Eggman's trying to beat us out with numbers, but we'll show him! We've got to work together on this one. Tails, let's give 'em a Blue Bomber!"

Clearly understanding the lingo, Tails answers, "Right!" Immediately, he rises into the air a few feet, before flying over Sonic, grabbing his arm along the way. He carries Sonic higher, then flips through the air, throwing Sonic down as he goes. Sonic curls into a Spin Attack as he's launched right into the horde of robots, taking out at least half a dozen of them in one blow, and bouncing right back into the air.

Sonic uncurls just long enough to shout, "Knuckles, spike me!" Sonic curls right back up, just as Knuckles leaps up to smack him back down at full force. Another large cluster of robots is taken out.

This time, Sonic lands back on the ground in a crouch. "Amy, Fastball!" He starts to rev up a Spindash.

"You got it!" Amy draws her hammer back as she runs up to Sonic, then swings at him with all of her might. Sonic is sent flying, ricocheting through the hallway, taking out scores of robots in his path. Knuckles and Tails quickly take out the last few stragglers.

As the last robot goes down, Amy cheers, "Yeah, we did it!" Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles all join in the celebration. Sonic and Tails fist bump, while Knuckles and Amy high-five.

Lumis applauds slowly. "Yes, yes, marvelous teamwork and all that. Now let's not waste any more time, shall we?"

Amy starts to mutter, " _That guy is really starting to–_ "

Sonic interrupts, "It's okay, Amy." He walks up to a door, and places a hand on it. "He's in here." He steps aside. "Knuckles, if you wouldn't mind?"

Knuckles readies a fist to knock the door. "Got it."

Just as Knuckles is about to punch, Tails shouts, "Wait!" Knuckles nearly trips over himself. Tails hovers his hand around a control panel for a moment, then presses a single button. The door slides right open. "See? Much easier."

Knuckles makes his way in first, muttering, " _Show-off…_ " The rest follow in.

In the room waits the Moonstone hedgehog, still bound to the examination table, his fur a soft, snowy white. Amy pushes past everyone else to run up to him. "Are you alright!? Did Eggman hurt you?"

The hedgehog slowly stirs into consciousness. Laying eyes on Amy, his fur shifts to bright cyan-blue, as a smile lights up his face. Then he lays eyes on Lumis behind her, and his happiness changes to fiery red rage.

Amy tries to sooth him. "Please, calm down, we're here to help you." Her words relax him slightly, though his fur remains red.

Sonic notices something on a table near the wall. "Well, would you look at that?" He walks over to the table and scoops up the purple Chaos Emerald. "Eggman left me a little Birthday present. What a sweet guy." Since Lumis is the closest, Sonic holds the Emerald out to him. "Hold this for a sec, would you?"

Lumis recoils back. "I'm not touching that _thing_!"

"Oookay…? I guess I'll just hold it." He walks around to the opposite side of the examination table from Amy, and they go to work on the hedgehog's bindings. Once he is freed, and starts to sit up, Sonic looks him in the eyes. "I want to help you, I'm going to get you out of here. But you have to trust me." After a moment, the hedgehog nods, as his fur fades back to its calm white. "Good. Everyone, circle up." The six individuals all gather into one spot. Sonic closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath.

Lumis questions with irritation, "Is something the matter?"

Sonic hesitates for a moment. "It's just that…I've never transported so many people before." The Moonstone hedgehog, standing next to him, gently grabs his hand.

Sonic looks up to the other hedgehog to see him smiling, his fur returned to its light aqua blue color. He tries to speak again. "Hhhhhelp…yooou…" At that moment, the Moonstone in his chest begins to glow brilliantly.

Sonic almost instantly seems to relax. "Chaos…Control!" All six disappear in a bright flash of blue.

Eggman watches it all happen on security feed, displayed on a small monitor. "That's right, hedgehog. Enjoy your little Birthday present. Orbot!"

Cubot's voice answers from another room, "Yes, Doctor?"

"Shut up, Cubot. I called for the competent one. Relatively competent, anyways."

"Uh…Orbot's not here right now, please leave a message after the beep. Uh…beep?"

Eggman groans and buries his face in one hand. He doesn't even bother asking. "Is the device secure?"

"Yes, sir. Location data is coming in."

"Very good. I expect both of you to be operational and prepared to work before I leave this room."

Cubot can be heard gulping in nervousness.

—–—

Sonic, Knuckles, and Lumis appear in Tails' living room. Lumis immediately begins to stretch out and relax. "Ah, finally out of that putrid place." Not bothering to make any requests, he takes a seat by a window, where the last of the evening sunlight floods in.

Sonic doesn't get quite so comfortable. "Alright, I want answers. You've spoken in nothing but riddles since the moment we met. You might be a Lord of Chaos, you might be a doctor, and you might know who I am. So let's get everything straight. Who are you, and what do you want? Lumis, is it?"

Lumis reclines back. "Yes, that's right. And I assure you, I _am_ a Lord of Chaos."

"That covers the who. Now the what."

"Hmm…how to best explain it? I imagine you've never heard of the Ritual of Illumination?" Sonic shakes his head. "That is sensible. It has only ever been attempted once in your history, and unsuccessfully at that. You do understand, of course, that your duty as Controller is to protect the world from Darkness, correct?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

"Well, imagine that, instead of working towards that goal that has been mandated for you every day for the rest of your life, never truly accomplishing anything, you could, tomorrow, protect the planet from Darkness for the rest of time, all in one single action, leaving you free to live out the rest of your life as you please."  
Sonic scratches his head. "The mandate, and the…Darkness…and what now?" Knuckles looks equally confused.

Lumis sighs. "It's simple. Through the Ritual of Illumination, you can simply eradicate all traces of Darkness from this planet. Your duty will be done, and the world will be filled with Light. That is why I am here. To help you through the Ritual."

—–—

Tails and Amy appear outside of the thick window looking down on the examination room, in which the Moonstone hedgehog appears. Almost immediately, he recognizes the room, and his fear at being re-imprisoned manifests in his sickly green fur. Amy speaks into a microphone connected to speakers in the room, "Please, don't be afraid. We just want to keep you safe." As usual, her words are enough to relax him slightly.

Tails takes out the last of the four fake Emeralds, and walks up to the microphone. Something seems to be weighing on his mind, and he addresses it immediately. "Last time you were here, this is what freaked you out so much, right?" He holds the gem up to the glass for the hedgehog to see. The hedgehog tenses up at the sight of it. "I saw you look right at them, you knew they were there, even through the walls and containers. It was the very first thing you felt, and you hated it."

The hedgehog answers back, with more understanding than anger, "Hhhate… Balance…"

Tails looks to Amy with confusion. "Balance? When did he learn that word?" Amy shrugs in equal confusion. Tails shakes his head and returns to the microphone. "Well…I don't want you to hate. So…" After looking down at the gem for a moment, he hurls it at the ground, and it shatters like glass on impact. "Do you…feel better now?"

"…Better…"

"You see? We just want to help you. But first, you have to help us. Who are you? We have to know."

The hedgehog closes his eyes and shakes his head fervently. He shouts angrily, "Who!"

Amy translates, "He doesn't remember, Tails. He doesn't know who he is any more than we do."

Tails answers back to the Moonstone hedgehog, "Please, you have to try and remember."

The hedgehog clutches at his head. "Remember…" He clenches his eyes shut, and clutches even harder. "Remember… Remember…"

"Let's try to start with a name. What is it that we should call you?" Tails puts a hand on his own chest. "I'm Miles, but my friends call me Tails. You can call me Tails, if you want."

"Miles…"

"Well, that's not really what I–"

"I am…I am…" The hedgehog growls as he struggles with the memory. "I am…Chaos!"

Tails and Amy's faces both light up. "So, your name is Chaos? We used to know someone else named Chaos. He couldn't talk like you can."

Chaos the Hedgehog doesn't seem to care about that statement, struggling to remember more. "I have to…"

"What is it? What do you have to do?"

"I have to… I have to… Arrgh!"

"That's alright, Chaos. You don't have to remember everything right now. But please, keep trying." Tails looks over to Amy. "Could you keep an eye on him for a while?" She smiles and nods, so Tails quickly leaves the room.

—–—

Sonic ponders for quite a while. "One ritual…and my job as Controller will be finished? Just like that?"

Lumis answers, "That is correct. Just think about it. Ever since you learned who you are, you've been struggling to find a direction, have you not?"

Knuckles concurs, "That's pretty much what you told me."

Lumis continues, "This is not only your direction, but your destination as well. Once this is done, your life will be yours again. No more responsibility, no more petty mandates by those…by… _we_ Lords of Chaos."

At that moment, Tails enters the room. Sonic looks over at him. "Tails, there you are. I think we were going to have a talk about _this_?" Sonic holds up the fake Emerald that Tails had given to him.

Lumis doesn't much seem to mind the distraction, as it gives him more time to relax in the sunlight.

"Sonic…I have something to–"

Sonic continues, "We talked about this, Tails. A long time ago. The Chaos Emeralds aren't something you should be messing around with.

"Sonic, I–"

"I trust you to be able to handle it, but can you imagine what would happen if Eggman got his hands on one of these? We can't just–"

"Sonic I crashed your plane!"

"W…what?"

"Its engine was being powered by one of the fake Emeralds, and…"

Knuckles finishes, "And we crashed it right in front of Eggman's base."

Sonic questions, "We?"

Knuckles answers, "I wasn't exactly helping."

Sonic sighs, and buries his face in one hand. "Oh…Tails…"

Tails mutters back, "I'm sorry…"

"I don't care about the plane, Tails. When was the last time I actually piloted that thing?"

"Well…uh…"

"Exactly. I don't remember it either. The _Tornado_ was more yours than it was mine. But you dropped a chance to create infinite power right into Eggman's hands!"

Knuckles questions, "Tails, didn't you say those things were supposed to be pretty fragile? What are the odds that it actually survived a plane crash?"

Sonic answers back, "I hope you're right. There's not a lot we can do about it at this point. After what we just pulled, that place is going to be even better defended than it was before, and we barely made it out, let alone getting back in _and_ back out."

Lumis chimes in, "I'm certainly not going back to that place."

Sonic looks back to Tails. "Tails, I'm glad that you didn't get hurt. I'll be glad to help you build a new plane. But I specifically told you not to make any more fake Emeralds. Why'd you do it without even telling me?"

"Well…I remembered what you said, but I thought…now that you're using Chaos Control again, I'd give you the real Chaos Emerald first…and then, when it eventually goes away like it always does, I'd give you a fake one, and it would totally sell you on the idea of having access to it whenever you want. But it all needed to be a surprise to work."

Sonic seems impressed. "Tails, have you ever considered a career in advertising? With a strategy like that, I think anyone would buy your product." Even the depressed Tails can't help but laugh. "Tails, I appreciate the thought. I really do. But from now on, for something this big, I need to know. Alright?"

"Alright."

"Wait…did you say you had one powering the _Tornado_ 's engines? Weren't those things prone to…you know, blow up any machine that tries to draw power from them?"

"That was true with the old model, yeah. But I finally got it to work with these ones."

"One more problem with Eggman getting his hands on them." He sighs. "Anyways, any progress with the other guy?"

"Actually, yeah. His–"

Knuckles suddenly shouts, "What the heck is happening to your arm!?"

Just about everyone in the room lets out a yell at the sight of Lumis' arm, which, at at least twice its expected length, wriggles and writhes around like a tentacle made of a thick golden fluid, stretching out towards Knuckles. Lumis quickly clenches the hand at the end of the arm into a fist, and the arm resolidifies into its normal shape. "I'm…sorry you had to see that. This form is…not easy to maintain."

At that moment, Amy pops her head into the room. "Guys, you might want to come see this. I think something's happening!" She retreats back to where she came from.

Tails starts to go after her, but stops as he realizes that no one is following him. Sonic says, "Tell her we'll be there when we're finished out here. I think we still have a few things to talk about." Tails nods and leaves.

Knuckles still stares at Lumis' arm suspectingly. "That looked…just like the stuff that's been attacking us."

Sonic continues, "I think you have a bit more explaining to do."

—–—

Amy and Tails re-enter the examination room. On the other side of the glass, the white-furred Chaos the Hedgehog sits cross-legged on the ground, his fingertips brought together in front of his closed eyes. The Moonstone glows brilliantly. Amy asks to Tails, "What do the readings say?"

Tails looks over all of the data that's available, but doesn't seem to find anything. "There aren't any readings beyond the normal for him. It's just…glowing."

"Where's Sonic?"

"He said he'd be here in a minute."

"What do you think Chaos is doing down there?"

"I…don't really know. It looks like he's…meditating?"

"Look, he's moving!" As she says, Chaos begins to stir.

Suddenly, the eyes of Chaos shoot open, as his fur becomes a brilliant, shining yellow. "I must intervene. I must intervene!"

—–—

Lumis nods slowly. "Yes…of course. You see…the creatures to which you refer…were me. Parts of me, anyways."

"So you _did_ try to attack us."

Knuckles adds, "Yeah, and you tried to steal the Master Emerald, too."

"The Master Emerald…so that's what you're holding. And no, not exactly. You see, the consciousness of the Lords of Chaos is…much different from this corporeal consciousness that you understand. When we speak, it is more like thought. When we think, it is more like drawing information from the universe itself. The transition process was…more confusing than I was prepared for. Parts of me escaped, mindlessly seeking large sources of power, such as the Master Emerald, or the Outlaw's…what did you call it? Moonstone? Only my core being retained enough intelligence to remain behind, seeking a mind and body from which to duplicate a proper corporeal form."

"So what did you need the power sources for?"

"For the Ritual, of course. Ideally, if performed on the Solstice, it would require only the seven Emeralds. However, we are a bit late for that, so more power is required to compensate. If I could, perhaps, take a look at the Master Emerald…?"

Knuckles takes the shrunken gem out, but doesn't show any sign of handing it over. "Ha. Not happening."

"Well…no matter. During your conversation with the fox boy, I came up with a different plan. May I see that…fake Emerald?"

Sonic gives Lumis a confused look. "Didn't you call fake Emeralds…'repulsive'?"

"No, no, that was just the purple one. So negative. I much prefer yours. Please?"

"Uh…sure." Sonic hands over the gem.

The moment Lumis touches it, his whole body begins to glow momentarily. He starts to stretch his muscles. "Ah. This will do quite nicely. Once you make a few more, we can–"

"Not happening."

"I'm…sorry? What exactly do you mean?"

"We're not making any more Emeralds, losing one was bad enough."

"Well…heh heh…" Lumis chuckles nervously as he looks back and forth from Sonic to Knuckles. "…you two aren't leaving me with very many options, are you?"

—–—

"I must intervene! I must intervene!" Chaos shouts over and over again at the glass, as he pounds a fist on the whitewashed wall.

Tails shouts back,"Please, slow down! We don't know what you're talking about! Please, explain!"

Chaos backs off, growling loudly. "I must… I…I can't! I don't know…the word!"

"What word? What are you trying to say?"

"The…the…the…" His mouth goes wide as he is struck by the word. "The Outlaw… The Outlaw!"

—–—

Lumis sighs. "Luckily…we do have one other option, though I find it distasteful. The Moonstone."

"You mean the one that's stuck to a person right now? How do you suppose we use _that_?"

"Either it helps us willingly, which is practically impossible, or we destroy its corporeal form, forcing its consciousness and powers to recede back into the Moonstone."

"You call that an option? You want us to kill him?"

"Well, I'd be glad to take care of–"

"No."

"Well…the Ritual must proceed in some way."

"Maybe it doesn't. Maybe you should forget about this Ritual, and get out of here before you offend us any more than you already have."

"Hold on, hold on, let's not be hasty here." He looks over to Knuckles. "Are you certain that I can't just…take a closer look at the Master Emerald for a moment?" Knuckles merely shakes his head. "Hmmm. I was sincerely hoping that it wouldn't come to this…but I do have one last resort prepared. Though I get the feeling you won't like it much."

—–—

Chaos continues to shout, "The Outlaw! The Outlaw!"

Tails looks over to Amy. "The Outlaw, isn't that what Lumis called him?"

"Yeah, but we already know that isn't his name. I think he's trying to tell us something else."

Chaos growls loudly as he tries to explain. "I must…I have to…have to… _stop_ the Outlaw!"

Amy takes the microphone. "Is that why you're here? To stop the Outlaw?"

"No, no, no no no. Not 'why'. 'Because'! The Outlaw…here, because I am here! I must stop the Outlaw!"

"Do you think you know where to find this Outlaw?"

"No, you don't…you don't understand! The Outlaw, out there!" He points to the only exit to room he's trapped in.

"Are you talking about Eggman? Is that why you went after his base?"

"No, no, no! You don't understand! Your friends…in danger! His name…his name…Lumis!" The eyes of Amy and Tails go wide. "Lumis _is_ the Outlaw!"

—–—

Sonic nods. "I'll bite. What's this 'last resort'?"

"Allow me to show you." Lumis stares deeply into the fake Emerald he still holds. It starts to glow, as his opposite arm morphs into a liquid state once again. It begins to resolidify into a much larger shape than his original arm. The new arm, completely gold in color, appears almost crystalline in structure, covered in smooth, flat surfaces and sharp edges, ending in a group of long, extremely sharp claws. The claws, like the Emerald, begin to glow. "My last resort…is to take what's mine by force!" Lumis lunges at Knuckles with his lethal claws.

 **To be Continued…**


	27. S0 E23: Order and Chaos

**Mystic Ruins**

 **Tails' Laboratory**

Lumis holds up his newly-formed claws. "My last resort…is to take what's mine by force!" He lunges at Knuckles, prepared to strike.

"Halt!" A yellow blur strikes Lumis from the side, knocking him to the ground. Chaos the Hedgehog lands in a crouch, and quickly rises to his feet.

Lumis gets up as well. "So, finally feeling talkative, are you? You and all the rest of the Lords were fools to be so ill-prepared. But you're too late." Lumis throws his normal arm once again at Knuckles, and it instantly reverts to its semi-liquid form, allowing it to reach halfway across the room. Knuckles is surprised enough to loosen his grip, and the Master Emerald is snatched from his hands.

Knuckles is quickly prepared to fight back. "Get your hands off my Emerald!" He dives straight towards the gem itself.

As Lumis' outstretched hand returns to him, he states calmly, "Chaos Shield." A bright yellow barrier forms around him, and Knuckles bounces off with a thud. "Can't have you breaking my power source, now can we?" With the barrier still up, he begins to absorb the power of the Emerald, breathing a sigh as the energy courses through him. Beginning with the shoulder of the great clawed hand, his entire body begins to transform similarly, removing all traces of cloth or skin, replaced by the flat surfaces and sharp corners of a gem-like exterior. When the transformation is complete, he is left with no recognizable face, but only a stubby crystal-like structure protruding from his shoulders.

The moment the shield goes down, Sonic goes in for a spin attack. The new Lumis effortlessly catches the spinning ball in one hand, and throws it back at Chaos, in the middle of preparing an attack of his own. The two are sent flying into a table, smashing it completely.

Knuckles starts to get back up for another attack, but Lumis points the palm of a hand at him. "Stay down, runt." Knuckles sprints out of the way just in time to avoid the massive beam of light that Lumis fires from his hand. He continues to pursue Knuckles with the beam, carving a swath of destruction in his wake. As Knuckles makes it to a wall, he kicks off of it, diving at Lumis at a much higher speed. "Nah ah ah." Lumis merely lifts the Emerald higher into the air, and Knuckles misses his mark entirely, crashing into the wall on the other side. Lumis takes a moment to look around at the destruction he has caused. "Well, this has been fun, but I really must be on my way. Chaos Control." He disappears in a flash of light.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 23**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 4: Order and Chaos**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

Tails and Amy run into the room. "Sonic, you can't trust Lumis, he–…" Tails trails off as he gets a good look at the room. Sonic, Chaos, and Knuckles are still rising to their feet, looking bruised and clutching their heads. Destroyed furniture, damaged walls, and a still-smoking line of black carved across the floor serve as marks of the brief battle that had just occurred. "I…guess you know that already. Heh heh."

Amy questions, "So what happened? Where did he go?"

Knuckles is the first to answer. "He got away. With _my_ Emerald." Amy gasps.

Tails responds, "So we should go after him, right?"

Sonic answers, "We have no idea where he might've gone. What we need is a solid plan, but we don't even know half of what's going on yet."

Chaos declares, "I…can help." All eyes turn to him. "Let me…help you." He extends a hand towards Sonic. Hesitantly, Sonic takes the hand with his own. Chaos starts to pull it closer to himself, and finally places it onto the gem on his own chest.

Sonic's eyes go wide as his mind is assaulted by a thousand separate thoughts at once, each senseless on its own, yet somehow together making enough sense to– "Ah!" Sonic backs off suddenly, startled and bewildered.

Amy asks, "What is it, what did he do?"

Sonic holds a hand up. "It's okay, I'm fine. I think…I understand."

Knuckles jabs back sarcastically, "Well, care to enlighten the rest of us?"

Sonic clutches his head again, but nods slowly. "Most of what Lumis said was true…except about the wrong person. The one who the Lords of Chaos sent to help me…was you." He looks up at Chaos, who nods back. "Except that…you were never supposed to have a body. You were supposed to be a thing, a tool I could use, one that calls to me and responds only to me, so that I could have access to Chaos powers without needing to have a Chaos Emerald."

Tails cheers, "Yes! I knew it was a good idea!" He quiets down as he realizes that Amy and Knuckles are glaring at him. "Sorry…"

Sonic continues, "Something from your realm can only exist in ours in the form of a gem, that's what the Lords of Chaos said to me last time. And that's all you were supposed to be. But, Tails' experiment did something you weren't expecting, and suddenly you were awake, with a consciousness completely different from anything you'd ever experienced before. Your brain was completely scrambled, but you remembered one thing. Another consciousness went with you. And it had to be stopped. But…I don't think I understand…what does 'the Outlaw' actually mean?"

Chaos nods slowly. "Over ten millennia ago, the one you know as Lumis was another Lord of Chaos, just as I." Everyone looks at him with surprise at the use of the complete sentence. "Contact with the Controller's mind has assisted my organization of thought. As I was saying, it is natural for the Lords of Chaos to explore all perspectives of a single debate. However, there was one who nearly always concluded in a position against the rest. His positions grew more and more extreme, until he grew tired of being ceaselessly in the minority. So he took a physical form in your realm, just as he has now, and attempted to convince the Controller of that time to perform the Ritual of Illumination. He acted against our collective will, and nearly succeeded in utterly destroying the Balance. He was thwarted, and after all the time he thought he had been ignored, it was deemed a fitting punishment to truly silence him. It seems he has been waiting for his chance to escape ever since. And when I was sent here, he found it."

Everyone goes silent for a long while. Finally, Knuckles speaks. "Great story and all, but we have a crisis on our hands here. Since you're so mighty and all-knowing, what do _you_ think we should do?"

Chaos thinks for a moment. "The Outlaw requires the Chaos Emeralds in order to perform the Ritual. So, the logical course of action is to gather the rest before he gets the chance."

Sonic nods. "A good old-fashioned Emerald hunt, eh? Tails, ya think you can dust off the old tracker?"

Tails gives him a smile. "You got it." He turns and runs out of the room.

Knuckles objects, "Wait, we're going after the Chaos Emeralds? What about the Master Emerald!?"

Chaos responds, "The Master Emerald may be powerful, dangerous in the wrong hands, but there is little that the Outlaw can do with it for the time being. You must understand, the Chaos Emeralds are a priority."

"No, you don't understand! I've devoted my life to protecting that thing, I need to find it _as soon as possible_!"

"I know all about your role as Guardian, Knuckles the Echidna." Chaos leans in towards Knuckles, and whispers quietly, "I also know that isn't your real name."

"What!?" Knuckles looks around frantically, but sees that no one heard. He says quietly back, "Are you trying to blackmail me or something?"

Chaos answers back in a normal tone of voice, "Not at all. I merely mean to say that I know who you are, and I know that you can assist us in this endeavor. I know that you wish to pursue the Outlaw, but that would be unwise at this time. You've just seen how the last battle went. If that was so bad, you'd hardly last a minute going after him on your own. And I would call that an optimistic estimate. So, do you intend to assist us?"

Knuckles grumbles, "Fine…"

Sonic interjects, "Everyone friends now?"

Amy, silent for quite some time, responds, "Actually, I don't really–"

Sonic ignores her. "Good. We want to do this efficiently, so that means splitting into teams. I'll go with Chaos. Amy, you go with Knuckles. And Tails…" He looks up to Tails, who has just re-entered the room, holding a familiar device. "…you stay here and coordinate."

"What!? No way! I'm going with you, I'm not staying here!"

"Tails, this is important. We need to get this done fast, and we can't do that unless you keep us organized. Besides, I won't be alone. Chaos will have my back."

"But…" Tails looks over at Chaos, who gives him a reassuring, if somewhat forced, smile. "Okay…"

"Alright, then catch us up. You getting any readings?"

"I'll need to hook it up to a Chaos Emerald first."

"Right." Sonic pulls out the purple Emerald, and hands it over to Tails, who inserts it into a slot on the device.

The device lights up, and Tails looks it over for a moment before pointing to two blips that have appeared on its screen. "Getting two nearby readings, one to the south, and one a bit farther north."

Sonic nods. "Alright. Knuckles, Amy, you head south. We'll go north."

Tails adds, "We'll definitely need to keep in touch." He pulls out a handful of communicators, and hands one to Sonic. "Here's something to replace the last one. Try not to break it this time." Sonic doesn't laugh at the joke as Tails continues to hand out the devices to the other three. "These Chaos Communicators will let us keep instantaneous contact, no matter where, or when, we are."

While Tails speaks, Chaos looks at the device curiously. Sonic taps him on the shoulder, and demonstrates how to fasten it to the ear. "Intriguing…" He does the same, then taps on it a few times to ensure that it's working.

Sonic steps forward. "We've wasted enough time here. Is everyone ready to go?"

Tails, Amy, and Knuckles all cheer, "Yeah!"

"Chaos?"

"I will remain by your side."

"Then let's go!" Sonic runs out, and Chaos follows behind him.

Knuckles prepares to leave as well, but Tails stops him. "Knuckles…do you think it's…weird, that Sonic is putting so much trust in this guy? After what just happened with Lumis? He's acting like he's known him all his life."

"Well…didn't he catch you up on the whole Controller thing? In a way, Sonic sort of _has_ known him all his life. And then some."

Amy adds, "I trusted Chaos before, and that goes double now. I've watched him save Sonic's life. He really does care."

Tails sighs. "Okay…. You two should get going."

Knuckles nods in farewell before turning to leave. "We're out."

Amy continues, "Be back soon."

Tails waves them off. "Good luck."

—–—

Dr. Eggman twirls the yellow Chaos Emerald around in one hand. In the opposite, he holds a duller version of the same gem. "Is the analysis complete?"

Orbot answers, "Yes, sir. It's a fully functional, fake Chaos Emerald. Data collected from the wreckage of the plane indicates that it can be used as a power source without concern."

"Can it be duplicated?"

"I believe so, sir."

"So, the fox boy really did it? I suppose I'm impressed. Remind me to thank him when I use it to take over the world! Ah ha ha ha ha!" Eggman's evil laugh is interrupted as Lumis appears in a flash of light. Eggman glares at him for a moment. "Ah, you're that ugly fellow from before, hm? Lumis, was it? Back to be captured again?"

"I am Lumis the Shining. And I highly advise against taking any such action towards me." He waves around a few claws. "For your own sake. I am here to make a deal."

"A deal, eh? And what exactly do you have to offer to me?"

"My goal is to perform a certain Ritual which would shift the Balance of the world. However, one can not merely remove one side of the balance. There must be an anchor point, in which all of the dark energies of the planet must concentrate. Typically, this would be one of the Chaos Emeralds. I can grant that energy to _you_. Practically unlimited power at your fingertips. Sound enticing?"

"My, such a large improvisation on an already abnormal ritual? Are you sure you can handle it?"

"And how exactly do you know about the current status of the Ritual?"

"Oh, never mind that. I have my ways."

"Well, my abilities are not in question. What I require from you in exchange are two things. Assist me in finding the remaining Chaos Emeralds. And produce as many false Emeralds as you are capable of."

"And why should I trust a word you say? If you can betray the rodent, why can't you betray me?"

"Perhaps you would care for some…collateral?" Lumis produces the Master Emerald.

"Yes, that will do quite nicely. Lumis, I think this is the start of a beautiful evil partnership."

"I don't know if I'd use the word 'beautiful'." He mutters more quietly, "Or 'evil', for that matter." He continues in a normal tone, "But I certainly believe that we can help each other. So, let us begin."

—–—

Sonic speeds through the dense jungle. Chaos follows at a surprising pace, though he seems to be slowly falling behind. Sonic looks over his shoulder and notices this, and slows down enough to let them run side-by-side. He comments, "You're pretty fast. I'm impressed."

"What did you expect? This body has been formed primarily based on your own genetic code, Controller."

"What about the parts that aren't?"

Chaos almost unconsciously seems to run a hand down one of his spikes as he runs. "It is a shame that there are so many things about this world that I will never understand. I cannot answer your question."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Chaos thinks for a moment. "That…brings me to another question, if I might ask?"

"Ask away."

"Very well. At what point shall I destroy this body and return to my intended form?"

Sonic skids to a halt. "What!?"

Chaos stops to match. "If I might make a suggestion, we should begin immediately, so that you might be prepared should the next battle come sooner than expected."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Shall I rephrase the–"

"No, no, no no no. I am _not_ going to let you kill yourself, do you hear me?"

"Well, 'kill' is not quite the correct word to describe the process. I would still exist, inside of this…" He taps the gem on his chest. "Moonstone. I can assure you that it can be done quite painlessly, for the sake of properly granting you the tool you were originally intended to have."

Sonic closes his eyes for a moment. Then he puts a hand on the shoulder of the other hedgehog. "Chaos…if there really is another battle coming…what do you think I'd rather have? A tool in my hand? Or a partner by my side?"

Chaos ponders for a moment while Sonic takes his hand back. "Hmm…intriguing. Well…" Mimicking Sonic's gesture, he puts a hand on Sonic's shoulder. "I wish you to know that, regardless of my form, I will do everything in my power to protect you."

Sonic seems surprised at the touch at first. But after a moment, his demeanor changes somehow. He stares at Chaos with a look in his eyes never seen there before. And for a moment, the two simply look at each other, the teenage hedgehog with no real family, and the ancient deity who has watched over him his entire life. Until a buzz comes in their communicators.

"Tails to Sonic and Chaos. It looks like you two have stopped, is everything alright?"

Sonic answers back, "Yeah, Tails. Everything's fine."

"Well, then get moving. We can't afford to waste any time."

Chaos looks past the trees to nearly-set sun. "It's alright, Miles. The Outlaw will not come out at night. It is his weakness. You have already seen his general aversion to darkness."

Sonic mutters, "You could've mentioned that before…"

Tails responds, "Even if that's true, we shouldn't take any chances. It won't be easy, finding four Emeralds in one night."

"He's right, Chaos. Let's move." Chaos nods in agreement, and the two take off again.

—–—

Amy and Knuckles make their way over and around a rocky cliffside, leading off into a desert area. Every few moments, they look to each other in an awkward silence. After quite some time of this, Knuckles finally breaks the silence. "So…umm…how are things going with Sonic?"

"Really? That's what you're going to ask me? Not, 'How was your day, Amy?' or 'What have you been up to this year, Amy?' No? It had to be 'How are things going with Sonic?' I do have a life outside of Sonic, you know."

"Geez, sorry I asked." They continue on in silence for a little while longer. "So…how was your day, Amy?"

"Hmph."

Knuckles quiets down for a while longer. Suddenly, he blurts out, "Why is Sonic the only person on the planet who actually likes me!?"

"Well maybe it's because you're a big knucklehead who only cares about himself! Just like Sonic!" She covers her mouth as she realizes what she just said.

"Do you…really think that about him?"

"Well…no…but…." She shakes her head. "Sometimes, it just feels that way. He's been going off on all of these solo adventures, and even if we are there, it seems like he'd rather us not."

"He's been trying to change that. That's what he told me this morning."

"So what if he is? He still hasn't spoken a word to me all year before today. He didn't even invite me to his Birthday party. I've been trying to give him the space that he needs, but it seems like he's noticing me even less!"

"If it's any consolation…you know, if something ever happened you, he wouldn't hesitate to rescue you. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he couldn't."

"So he only cares about me when it's convenient for him? That still sounds pretty selfish."

"But that doesn't change how you feel about him, does it?" After a moment, she shakes her head. "And what about me?"

"Knuckles, you know I didn't mean that."

"Oh? Then what did you mean?"

"It's just…you spend all day, every day, sitting alone on an island with a giant rock as your only companion. And whenever you aren't, it's because you're out here doing something to protect it. You're never really nice to anyone, just single-mindedly going after whatever it is you're doing so that you can go back to sitting alone with your rock. If people don't like you, it's because you never act like you like anyone else."

Knuckles sighs as he ponders that. "Thanks…for being honest with me."

She smiles. "It's what I do."

He thinks on the topic of honesty a while longer. "And…what if I told you…that my name…" He seems to struggle with even those words, and eventually just shakes his head. "Nevermind." He looks off into the desert. "We should be getting close to the Emerald now."

—–—

Sonic's large shoe sloshes into the muck of the swamp, as he trudges through the thick liquid. "I think–" He stops as he accidentally splashes himself with the filthy liquid. He continues, "I think I might have found the one thing I hate more than water." He struggles with every step. "Muck water."

As Chaos moves alongside him, he runs some of the stuff through his hands. "It's composed primarily of decomposing plant material. It harbors no ill will towards you. Nor does regular water, for that matter."

"Yeah? Tell that to the hundred and one times I've almost drowned."

Chaos looks at him curiously. "I fail to understand how speaking to an event which has already occurred is possible, let alone what it might accomplish."

"Nevermind. It's just an expression." Suddenly, Chaos stops. "What's up?"

"The Emerald. It is near." He points to the top of a rotting tree some distance away, out of which a faint blue glow emerges.

"There it is!" Sonic seems prepared to run for it, but appears to think better of charging through the muck at the last moment. He starts trudging slowly in that direction instead, careful not to get splashed again.

Chaos still doesn't move. "There's something else. A…presence."

Sonic calls back as he trudges forward, "What's that?"

"It feels…Light. It can't be…"

"You're gonna have to speak up!"

"Get down!" Chaos dives at Sonic, sending them both splashing into the swamp, just in time to avoid the beam of light energy that slices through the spots they had just been standing in, spraying them even further.

The voice of Lumis calls out, "Aren't you supposed to be the fast one, Controller?"

Sonic climbs back to his feet, covered in the muck, coughing some out and wiping more from his eyes. But he finally gets a good look at their attacker. Lumis still resembles his crystalline form, but has become interspersed with machinery, giving him the appearance of a cyborg. Most importantly, the cyan Chaos Emerald has been attached to a slot in the machinery on the chest. Sonic lets out another cough. "So…you aren't so afraid of the dark after all? Looks like _someone_ …" He shoots a glare at Chaos. "…exaggerated a bit about you."

Chaos gets back to his feet as well. "He appears to have been augmented with some sort of cybernetic technology."

Sonic clenches his fist. "Eggman."

Lumis lets out a laugh. "I've learned much since last time I arrived in this world. How to choose the winning side of a battle, for example. It seems you aren't even competent enough to find a single Emerald in the time that we've found two. Soon to be four."

Sonic says quietly to Chaos, "I don't think he knows that the Emerald's right there behind him. I'm gonna distract him, you go for the Emerald once he's gone." Without giving him a chance to answer, Sonic shouts at Lumis, "Hey, metalhead! Wanna see just how 'competent' I am!?" Sonic dashes at Lumis as if to attack, and Lumis prepares to block. But Sonic takes a sharp turn at the last moment, ending up on Lumis' left, where he stops to pose and waggle his finger. "Then try to keep up." Chaos stares at Sonic with curiosity as he takes off, Lumis close behind him.

Sonic sidesteps another energy beam as he runs. "Still think I'm not fast enough?" He dodges again. Then he reaches for his communicator. "Knuckles, Amy, Lumis is here. It sounds like he might be after your Emerald too. Be ready for a fight." He turns a sharp corner to avoid yet another beam.

—–—

"Just what are you getting at?" Knuckles glares at Amy skeptically, apparently in the middle of a new conversation.

Amy shrugs. "We've been wandering around this desert for hours. If you really were such a great treasure hunter, wouldn't we have found it by now?"

"Hey, why don't you try finding something so small in such a big wasteland?" He stops to think. "The fact that we haven't even seen a glow from it yet tells me that it must be buried underground somewhere. But I can't just go digging through the whole desert hoping to find it." He taps his communicator. "Tails, are you sure you can't get us any closer?" He waits for an answer. "Tails?"

Amy taps him on the shoulder. "Knuckles…I see a glow…but I don't think it's the Chaos Emerald…" She points up in the air, to a faint yellow glimmer which rapidly glows brighter.

Sonic's voice comes in over the communicator. "Knuckles, Amy, Lumis is here. It sounds like he might be after your Emerald too. Be ready for a fight." At that moment, Lumis crashes to the ground, cracking through rock and throwing up a massive cloud of dust, and creating a huge crater.

Knuckles coughs through the dust. "Looks like he's here too! How is there two of him!?"

As the dust clears, Lumis, green Emerald in mechanical chest and red one in clawed hand, seems almost happy to explain. "There's no more of me than there was before. However, my new partner has been kind enough to outfit my lesser parts with some…power enhancers. Allowing me to speak through them. Among other things." The apparently-fake Lumis holds up his empty claws. "I really have no use for you two. So I'll be on my way." He fires his beam of energy in arc to cut them both down, but they both dive out of the way in time. While they're on the ground, he soars right back up into the air.

"He's getting away!"

Amy looks to Knuckles quickly. "Throw me."

"What!?"

"Do it!" Somewhat reluctantly, Knuckles grabs Amy by the arm, and throws her upwards with tremendous strength. She readies her hammer for a swing as she flies towards the fleeing Lumis. But her ascent slows quickly, and Lumis starts to gain ground again, laughing at her failure. "Oh no you don't!" In desperation, she flings her hammer at him. It impacts his shoulder, dislodging machinery and exposing a liquid core. But he still flies away unhindered, as Amy starts to fall.

—–—

"He's gone, we lost the Emerald."

Sonic answers back to Knuckles, "That's alright, I've still got him here."

Lumis' voice calls out, "Oh, you have me, do you?" Sonic skids to a stop as he realizes that Lumis is no longer following him. "Because I believe it is I…who has you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Tell me…have you heard from the fox boy recently?"

Sonic freezes up. "No…"

"No matter. I've distracted you here for long enough. My work is done." Just like the other one, Lumis takes off straight into the air at high speed, far beyond Sonic's reach.

Sonic, hands trembling, reaches for his communicator. "Tails…? Tails, can you hear me…? Tails? Tails, respond! Respond!" He's already taken off running. "Tails, please, answer me!"

—–—

Tails backs away, one step at a time, from yet another mechanized Lumis clone, which appears to have crashed in straight through the wall. His communicator lies on the floor, out of which Sonic's muffled shouts can be faintly heard. Lumis points his claws at the trembling fox. "Do the right thing, boy. Hand over the Emerald." Tails takes another step back. "It would be against my nature to harm an innocent child such as yourself. But that doesn't mean I won't. You're the smart one, aren't you? Make the smart choice. Or you won't be the only one to go through unnecessary suffering."

 **To be continued…**


	28. S0 E24: Light and Dark Part 1

**Mystic Ruins**

Sonic comes to a stop as he sees the massive hole in the wall of Tails' Laboratory, from the base of the hill that it sits on. "No…no, no, no!" He sprints up the hill, and hurdles through the hole into the building. "Tails! Tails, answer me!" Sonic frantically searches through the room. He stops as he finds Tails, lying on his hands and knees on the floor.

"I'm sorry… I gave him the Emerald…"

Sonic kneels down to help him. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?" Tails shakes his head. Sonic slowly helps him to his feet. "That's all that matters. Besides, they didn't get all of them."

Behind them, Chaos the Hedgehog steps through the hole into the rubble-strewn room, caked in drying swamp muck just as Sonic is. "I'm afraid that they have."

"Whaddya mean? The Emerald was right there, how did they get it from you!?"

"I…wish that I could explain. As soon as you left, I was attacked by several lesser parts of Lumis, augmented with technology just like the large ones. One of them approached me, and…I seem to have blacked out. At the next moment, I was alone, and the Emerald was gone."

As Chaos speaks, Knuckles and Amy trudge in behind him, covered in desert dust and and wearing defeated looks. At Sonic's questioning look, they merely shake their heads.

Sonic hangs his head and sighs. "So that's it, then. Just like that, Eggman and Lumis got all seven Emeralds, and the Master Emerald too." He shakes his head. "I should've listened. I was a fool to think that I could've been a leader. Lumis was two steps ahead from the very beginning."

Chaos steps forward, shaking his head. "If any of us are to blame, it is I. The Emerald was practically in my grasp, but I somehow let it slip away."

Amy objects, "I could've gotten an Emerald back if I hadn't missed the shot."

Tails almost seems in tears. "I gave it to him! I just handed it over!"

Knuckles tries his best to calm everyone down. "Look, as much as all of you are at fault, we need to–"

Amy interrupts, "All of ' _you_ '!? Excuse me!? If you had actually done your job, _'treasure hunter_ ,' we wouldn't've even–"

"Oh, so you think this my fault!? You know, you're lucky that I decided to catch you after that stunt that you–"

Sonic suddenly shouts, "Everyone, chill out!" The room goes silent as everyone turns to him. "Things may not be going well, but…the last thing we need right now is to be fighting with each other."

Knuckles seems skeptical. "You say that like we haven't already lost. In case you haven't noticed, Eggman has everything."

"Not everything. To do their ritual, they still need one more thing. Me."

Amy doesn't seem to like that answer. "Are you saying that we use you as bait? 'Cause I'm _not_ okay with that."

"No. What I'm saying is…right now, what I think we all need is a shower, and a few hours of sleep."

Chaos concurs, "The ritual can only be performed when the sun is at its peak. There is no advantage to rushing in unprepared. We have time." Everyone nods in agreement.

"Alright. Then let's rest and regroup."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 24**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 5: Light and Dark Part 1**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

Sonic, clean once again, stares up at the stars of the Mystic Ruins. He lies back on the roof of the laboratory. He thinks back to the words that Zero had said to him six months ago. _"You couldn't lead your way out of a paper bag!"_

Sonic chuckles a bit. "You were right, pal. Guess I just don't have it in me."

His thoughts move on to something that Knuckles said. _"On some days it can really tear you up, not knowing if you're doing your job right or not… If you really are the chosen one, then the right thing to do has to be whatever it is that you do."_

"Trouble sleeping, Controller?" Chaos interrupts his thoughts, and sits cross-legged beside him.

Sonic sighs. "This is all going to turn out fine, right? I'll make the right choice in the end, because…I'm the Controller. Isn't that how it's supposed to work?"

"If you are asking for a glimpse into the future…I'm afraid that I have no more knowledge of it than you. The moment the Outlaw came here, everything that I knew changed. Even if I knew how to speak with the rest of the Lords of Chaos, I doubt there would be any certain answer. But…I sense that isn't what you mean."

"I really am this chosen one. So there's destiny and all that. Is it even possible…for me to fail?"

"Is that really what you think? That you deserve no credit for anything you've ever accomplished in your life? I imagine anyone would be troubled who believes that." He shakes his head. "No, I've clearly failed to explain this properly. What you say about destiny…it's **nonsense**. You were granted a special power…because you have a pure heart, and the will to do good for the world. Not the other way around. We had faith in your future when we selected you as the Controller. That fact didn't change who you are. It merely improved your physical ability to bring about the good that you would have pursued, with or without our intervention."

Sonic sighs. "So I _can_ lose, but I've just gotten lucky up 'til now. Not very reassuring. But good to know."

Chaos stops to think for another moment. "I have never before considered…what a burden it must be to carry such a responsibility. Observing you for this brief time, I came to believe that your dedication to doing what is good is simply more important to you than anything else, leading to your…serious disposition. But as you attempted to distract the Outlaw, I witnessed…something else. Almost as if you were a different person. I did not understand it at the time. But now…I believe that I do. In that moment, I witnessed for the first time who you really are. I witnessed a person who enjoys the thrill of being alive, momentarily unburdened by thoughts of responsibility. Controller…perhaps I was incorrect. Perhaps the title _has_ changed who you are. Or at least…your knowledge of it has. Is it true? Do you no longer smile, because you now see work where there was once only passion?"

Sonic thinks on that for a while. "I guess you're right. Things have been different ever since I learned. But…" He chuckles a bit. "…anything's better than what I was before."

"What do you mean?"

"I was in a rough spot. I was reckless. I was ignorant. I was kind of a jerk. I had an ego like you wouldn't believe. Sometimes it was better than others, but eventually, everyone started calling me a fool. It took some responsibility to wake me up."

"But you were happy?"

"Well, I was smiling a lot more."

"It sounds to me…as if a balance is necessary."

"You know, it wouldn't hurt _you_ to smile once in awhile."

Chaos' response seems almost habitual. "Every smile must be matched by a frown. That is the way of Chaos."

Sonic once again stops to think. "The way you talk about Balance and Chaos…you make it sound so…easy. Like the whole world should just be balancing out on its own. But I'm not even good enough to make it happen. I can't even balance myself the right way."

"You…are correct, in a sense. Balance is the natural state of the universe. But perfect Balance…of the kind we have always striven for…is not so simple as that. That a smile is matched by a frown is Balance. But perfect Balance is a state constantly between the two, and that takes work."

"Is that really the best way? Never experiencing joy, just so that you never end up sad? Sounds like a pretty boring life."

"Perhaps it would be. But imagine it on a greater scale. Imagine a complete generation of Light, the entire world filled with joy. Then imagine the next generation, filled with terror and suffering, never having experienced the Light that their Darkness balances. Next, imagine one thriving society, and another stricken with poverty. That is Balance. But does it sound fair?" Sonic shakes his head. "Now imagine, in the second scenario, that the thriving society granted all they have in excess to the society in need. Neither would have excess, and neither would be in need. That is perfect Balance. It can be seen as unfortunate that the first society could no longer enjoy their Light, but as a whole, peace would be at its greatest."

Sonic clutches at his head. "This is too much for me. How can I ever do this?"

"It is alright. In time, you will come to understand. And…if it means anything to you…our faith in you has never wavered. You will succeed in the battle against the Outlaw, not because it is easy, not because destiny demands it, but because I believe that you can."

Sonic can't help but smirk. "Now _that's_ reassuring."

For quite some time, the two simply stare up at the stars. Many of them begin to fade away as the earliest dawn light appears on the horizon. Finally, Chaos speaks again. "Do you have a plan, for when the time comes to face Lumis?" Sonic doesn't respond. Chaos looks over at him. His eyes are closed, and his chest moves up and down rhythmically in a light snore. Though Chaos doesn't smile, his soft cyan fur gives away his happiness at the sight.

Chaos turns his head back to the horizon, far out over the ocean. Though no one is left to hear him, he still continues to speak. "Though the single day I've spent on this Earth is nothing to the millenia I've lived…you've taught me far more today than I'd ever thought I could learn, Controller. No amount of observation, no amount of forethought, can ever serve as a substitute for live experience." The sun slowly peaks over the sea, casting the world in a brilliant orange light. "This world…his world…is truly beautiful. I never would have truly understood this if it weren't for the accident of my being here. The only way to learn…is to live." He looks back over to Sonic. "Even the most sound of plans rarely survive implementation. Perhaps it is for the best that we be prepared for anything…rather than going in with impossible expectations. There is no way to truly know what will happen…until the time arrives. And the true test of leadership is how you respond in that moment…and how willingly you are followed." He looks one last time at the rising sun. "There are inherent dangers to action without planning. But so long as I am here…I will do whatever it takes to protect you. And to protect this world."

Chaos closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in, putting his fingers together in meditation. After a moment, Sonic peeks one eye open at him.

—–—

Everyone has gathered in front of Tails' laboratory, cleaned and rested. Though the sun is higher in the sky, it is still somewhat early in the morning. Amy questions, "So what's the plan?"

Sonic and Chaos give each other a quick look. Tails answers back, "Before we figure out what, we need to figure out where."

Chaos responds, "I can sense the location of the Emeralds."

"And I can sense the Master Emerald," Knuckles adds.

Sonic continues, "But I think we all have a pretty good idea of where."

Amy agree with some disdain, "Eggman's base." Knuckles and Chaos both nod.

Tails seems satisfied. "Next we need to figure out how to get there. Even if we still had the _Tornado_ , it wouldn't fit all of us."

Knuckles thinks for a moment. "I'm guessing Chaos Control is out of the question?"

Chaos steps forward. "Not necessarily." He turns to Sonic. "With my power, you should be able to perform Chaos Control."

Sonic raises a fist. "Then what're we waiting for? Let's get this show on the road." Sonic extends a hand to Chaos. Chaos takes the hand, and gently places it on the Moonstone in his chest. Sonic closes his eyes. "Get ready, everyone. Chaos…Control!"

—–—

 **Mt. Lux**

 **Eggman's Base**

The group reappears several feet in the air, and all crash to the ground. Sonic gets up first, rubbing his head. "Sorry, guys. Guess I still need a little more practice." Everyone looks up to the top of the mountain to see a giant rendition of Eggman's face carved into the stone. "Well that's new."

Amy responds, "Not like he hasn't done it before."

Tails' eyes go up and down to the side of the mountain. "No turrets."

Knuckles looks to the busted door. "No robots."

Sonic nods slowly. "Why try to stop us? Eggman wants me here."

"A sound deduction, for a dim hedgehog." All look up to see Eggman's newest mech descending from above. The mech, resembling the typical Egg Pawn-like shape, has wide mechanical birdlike wings, wears a halo seemingly made of light above its head, and wields an ornate staff in one hand. "Let's make this simple, shall we?" The mech offers its large free hand to Sonic in an almost elegant bowing pose. "I know where you want to be. And I want you there as well. So my Egg Angel will take you there. Alone."

Knuckles step forward in a fighting stance. "Not a chance, Egg–"

Sonic puts a hand up. "It's alright, Knuckles." He looks up to the head of the mech. "I'll go."

Amy, Tails, and Knuckles at once shout, "What!?"

"This is the best way, guys. Now none of you have to get hurt. And Knuckles…" Sonic looks into the eyes of the echidna with just the slightest smirk. "…I hope you find what you're looking for."

Eggman lets out with a laugh, "That's two smart ideas in a row, Sonic. Must be a new record for you."

Sonic looks back up to the mech. "They didn't let me finish. I'll go…but Chaos comes with me." Chaos steps up beside him and gives him a nod.

In the cockpit of the mech, Eggman raises an eyebrow. He answers almost sarcastically, "Well…if you insist. Now, climb aboard. Let's make this quick."

Sonic takes the first step without hesitation, but Tails grabs him by the hand to stop him. "Sonic, you can't! We have to–"

Knuckles puts a hand on Tails' shoulder. "He's right, Tails. It's the best way."

"But…" Tails trails off, not objecting any further.

Sonic and Chaos step up onto the mech's hand, and turn back to face the others. Sonic bids farewell with a wave and wink. Then the Egg Angel takes off into the sky, creating a great gust of wind with its beating wings.

Amy a heavy sigh sigh. "So that's it? Now we just wait for him?"

Knuckles lets out a chuckle. "Are you kidding? Didn't you hear what Sonic said? I'm going after the Master Emerald." He starts to walk towards the entrance at the base of the mountain. "Up to you if you want to come with me." Tails and Amy run to catch up with a cheer.

—–—

The Egg Angel enters through the nose of the giant Eggman carving in the mountain, into along, rocky cave. Sonic looks back at the entrance with a hint of disgust. "Is this you trying to be funny, Eggman? Or did you actually think making an entrance through your nose was a good idea? I honestly can't tell."

Eggman grumbles, but doesn't respond verbally.

"Isn't it a little…I don't know, not your style to take the orders from the other guy? I always thought you liked to be in charge."

"Unless you want me to crush you in my hand right now, I suggest you keep your mouth shut, hedgehog."

"Oh, did I hurt your _feelings,_ Eggman? All you had to do was say so."

Chaos gives Sonic a slight nudge. "Perhaps you should keep your quips at a minimum for the time being? Our fate, at the moment, is…" He glances down to the mech's hand that holds them. "…quite literally in his hands."

"And pass up a chance to ruin Eggman's day? I thought you wanted me to smile more."

"I didn't want your responsibility to interfere with your happiness. I'm beginning to understand that those are not the same."

Eggman shouts, "Both of you just keep quiet! We've almost arrived." As the mech travels through the dim cave, it is increasingly lit by an eerie crimson glow. They soar towards a wide opening, through which the red light floods. The light grows far brighter as they pass through the opening.

On the other side waits a wide cavern, lit by a bubbling pool of magma. But high above, near the roof of the cavern, is an even more brilliant orb of blinding golden light, almost mistakable for the sun. As the Egg Angel sets down on a flat stone platform raised above the molten magma below, a voice booms from the orb of light, "Why have you brought _that one_ here!?"

The Egg Angel lets the hedgehogs onto the ground. "I'm afraid that…the Controller was quite insistent. It doesn't matter. There's nothing they can do now." Eggman can't help but chuckle quietly.

The voice of Lumis booms back, "Very well. Just keep an eye on it. As for you, Sonic…" Out of thin air, a barrier of glowing yellow energy in the shape of a pathway appears, stretching out from the stone platform, curving and twisting all the way up to the orb of light. "…here I am. Come and get me."

Sonic glances up at Eggman. "Remember that thing I said about who gives the orders? Might wanna think about that." Eggman grumbles wordlessly as Sonic takes his first step onto the path of light.

Chaos glances up at Eggman. "You must really hate him."

Eggman seems almost pleasantly surprised at being understood. "Sometimes I wonder how I'm the only one."

"In any battle…there must be a victory, as well as a defeat. But if there is no battle, neither side need suffer. If the two of you could come to some sort of–"

"No."

Chaos looks back to Sonic as he winds his way along the path. "Very well. Change must be voluntary."

"Well…" Eggman smirks. "…if that's what you believe."

"I only hope that the Controller understands this."

"Why are you still talking to me?" Chaos gives a rather casual shrug in response.

As Sonic draws near the end of the path, he's forced to shield his eyes from the light of the orb. The voice of Lumis beckons from within, "Yes…enter." Sonic places his hand up to the outer edge of the orb, and his arm almost seems to be drawn in. He steps the rest of the way into the pure light.

—–—

Sonic opens his eyes to find himself floating in a void of pure, golden light. The crystalline form of Lumis drifts down in front of him, unsullied by any kind of metal or machinery. "Beautiful, isn't it? This is only the beginning of what the ritual will bring. But you wouldn't believe that from a villain such as I, would you?"

Sonic looks up and down Lumis' form. "I…I don't think that you're a villain. You want what you think is best for the world, I can see that, I can hear it in every word that you say. But you're doing it all wrong. Betraying and attacking us? Joining with Eggman? How is that going to bring peace to the world?"

"Hmm…perhaps there's hope for you after all." Lumis floats past Sonic, and stops still facing away from him. "I never wanted to betray you. But this ritual means everything to me. For ten thousand years, I waited in silence with only one reason to go on living. Imagine it all being for nothing. And all that stood in the way was one hedgehog's misguided principles."

"Which one of us is misguided? The Light you want can't exist without Darkness. You're a Lord of Chaos, you should know that."

"Correction— _was_ a Lord of Chaos. And how could you possibly stomach a word of that Chaos nonsense? You can't possibly tell me that you haven't asked yourself, how it's better to feel nothing at all than to experience joy!"

"Well…I guess–"

"Exactly!" Lumis turns back to look Sonic in the eye. "And I'll let you in on a little secret. When the ritual is complete, the Darkness won't simply go away. I have a very special place in mind for it."

"'Special place'? You can't just contain it like that."

"I don't have to for long. Once I send this world's Darkness to the Realm of Chaos, it won't be able to escape."

"So…it's been about revenge the whole time?"

"Revenge? Not at all! Sonic, you have to understand. Your world is beautiful. Mine is corrupt and ugly. Surely even your new friend has recognized that by now. I have the ability to save your world by bringing an end to the misery of mine. Perhaps…justice for those who imprisoned me is a…fortunate side-effect of the process."

Sonic shakes his head. "It doesn't have to be that way, Lumis. Our worlds _can_ coexist. There are other, better ways to protect the world from Darkness! You don't have to go back! You can stay here, and help us do things the right way! You aren't a villain, I know it!"

"Oh, I intend to stay here. Once we're finished, there won't be anywhere to go back to."

Sonic sighs. "You know, I _want_ to say that you aren't a villain, but then you go and say something like that. You're making this _really_ hard."

Lumis slowly turns his head-like protrusion upwards into the void. "The time is almost here. So I'll ask you one more time." He faces Sonic once again. "Will you help me?"

"I want to help you. But not with the ritual."

Lumis draws slightly apart from Sonic. "Very well." He floats around to Sonic's back. "I can promise you, this will only hurt for a short while."

"What?" Sonic starts to struggle, but can't turn to face Lumis, as if he were held in place. "What're you doing!?"

Lumis reaches out towards Sonic's back with the tip of a single claw. "Once the Ritual of Illumination is complete…all of your pain will be gone. Even the pain inside of your heart." The claw touches the center of Sonic's spine, and Sonic's eyes go wide.

"Wh…wha…?" Lumis' claw starts to liquify as it digs deeper, and Sonic's body goes limp.

"Don't worry. I'm just reaching into your nervous system. But I'll only need control of you for a few moments."

"Get…out of…my…" Sonic can't even seem to finish the thought.

"Yes, just relax. It will hurt less that way." Lumis breathes a deep sigh. "I can feel it now. Your Light is marvelous, Controller. But I also feel your pain. The pain of abandonment. The pain you've held with you your entire life, but long since stopped thinking about. The kind of pain that never truly goes away. But I can make it go away. _We_ can make it go away. _We_ can create a perfect world."

"Perfect…world… I can see it…"

"That's right. We're connected now. Take a moment to savor it. A world with no pain. A world with no evil. You will never again have to worry about bringing your friends to harm. It's your greatest fear, easy to read. The new world will be without fear. And it's only a few moments away. Now…feel the Light. Feel its energy all around you. Feel it coursing through your veins. And then…say the words."

"Words…?"

"You know them well. The words that connect you to the Balance. The words that will catalyze its change."

"The words… C…Chaos…Control." In an instant, the sea of light around them grows infinitely brighter, blinding out all else.

—–—

The orb of light at the top of the volcano's interior grows as bright as the void inside inside of it, forcing Chaos and Eggman to shield their eyes. The orb pulsates with greater and greater energy, until it finally explodes, destroying the rocky ceiling, and exposing the magma-filled cavern to the noontime sun almost directly overhead.

As the light clears, the limp body of Sonic is revealed, Lumis' claw still stuck into his back. Above them floats the Master Emerald. Around it orbits the seven Chaos Emeralds. And orbiting around all of them, roughly forming the border of what was once the orb of light, are multiple rows of dozens upon dozens of fake yellow Chaos Emeralds.

Lumis pulls back his arm, and Sonic's limp body falls towards the bubbling magma below.

"Sonic!" Chaos springs into action, leaping from his stone platform, flying through the air, and kicking off of the opposite wall. He catches Sonic in his arms as their paths meet, and spins through the air before skidding to a stop back on the platform.

Lumis seems impressed. "Nice reflexes. But I wasn't going to let him fall, you know. What kind of monster do you think I am?"

Sonic looks up at Chaos weakly. "I'm sorry. I couldn't…stop…"

Chaos helps him back to his feet. "It's not too late. We must–" Suddenly, everything goes dark, save for the dim glow of the magma. High overhead, what appears to be the moon can be faintly seen. A slight amount of light returns as a sliver of it is covered by a sliver of sunlight in some sort of impossible backwards eclipse.

Lumis starts to laugh. "The Ritual of Illumination has begun! When the moon is eclipsed by the sun, this world will be free from Darkness! Ah ha ha ha ha!"

Eggman suddenly shouts, "Wait a minute! Where's the power you promised me!?"

"Patience, round one. The energy must be gathered first. Just sit tight, and–"

"Give me back my Emerald!" Knuckles slams into Lumis, knocking him back. From the force of the blow, Knuckles springs up, grabbing the Master Emerald out of the air, and skillfully landing back on the ground next to Sonic and Chaos. "Glad to see you guys left some the fun for me." He cracks his knuckles as Tails flies Amy down to join the group.

Lumis laughs once again. "You can _have_ the gem! I don't need it anymore! In fact, I don't need any of them!" One by one, the false Emeralds begin to lose their color, and drop from their orbit, splashing into the magma below.

Eggman shouts, "Hey! Those weren't easy to make, you know!"

Chaos points up at Lumis. "Controller, look." As some of the last few fake Emeralds fall, the real ones too begin to lose their color, until they all fall at once, landing with a clatter on the very edge of a precipice of rock. Sonic gives a smirk.

Amy looks to the dull grey Emeralds on the floor, and realizes what Sonic is thinking. "Yeah! Go for it, Sonic!"

Tails and Knuckles seem to remember as well. "You can do it, Sonic!"

"Show 'em who's boss!"  
Sonic moves to run for the drained gems, but an ornate staff blocks his way. Eggman shouts from the Egg Angel mech, "You won't be going for anything!"

The hand holding the staff is suddenly blasted by a static charge, knocking it out of Sonic's way. Tails stands pointing his EMP blaster at Eggman's mech. "We'll keep him out of your way! You keep going!" To prove the point, Knuckles dives in for a solid punch at the mech's cockpit, Amy following close behind.

Nothing left in his way, Sonic runs for the dull Emeralds.

Chaos looks to Sonic with confusion. "What are you trying to accomplish?"

Sonic declares, as much to Lumis as to Chaos, "I've been around the block a few times. And I know that there's two sides to the energy of the Chaos Emeralds. They may look drained when one whole side is used up, but I can still harness their _real_ power." He closes his eyes and clenches a fist. "I can empower the Chaos Emeralds with positive energy." His fist begins to shake as he begins the transformation process.

"Controller…?"

Sonic turns his head up and shakes his fist even harder. "Hold on, I'm concentrating."

"Concentrating on a futile effort!" Sonic opens his eyes and looks at the ground. The Emeralds still lie just as dormant as before. "You can't use the positive power of the Emeralds, because that's what Lumis has already drained! The negative power still remains, but I don't think you would like the outcome of absorbing it, even if you were able."

"Alright. Have any better ideas?"

Chaos once again points up at Lumis, who appears to be concentrating. There's still one gem left floating above him. It appears to be another drained fake. But periodically, a strange arching stream of shadowy energy flies at the gem from a random direction, adding to its power. Each time this happens, the the sliver of light covering the moon seems to grow slightly larger. "That is the anchor point to the ritual. The place where all of the dark energies of the world are being concentrated."

"And once it's done, he's going to send it to your realm. That's what he said."

"We can't allow that to happen. But if we get the anchor from him, and destroy it, the ritual will end, and the balance will be restored."

"He's not going to let us get close to him that easily. We had a hard enough time with it when he wasn't supercharged. I bet I could do it with the Emeralds, but unless you know of any Gaia Temples nearby, I'm fresh out of ways to recharge them."

"There may…" Chaos glances over to the waging fight between Eggman and Tails, Amy, and Knuckles. "…be another way."

Amy leaps up and takes a swing at Eggman's cockpit, but the mech swats her back to the ground. Knuckles leaps up in her place. The mech tries to swat once again, but Tails gets a shot off at the hand, knocking it away and giving Knuckles the chance to land a solid hit. As Knuckles lands on the ground, he turns his head at the sound of Sonic's shout. "Knuckles, we need you!"

Amy looks back at Knuckles. "Help them, Tails and I can handle this."

Knuckles nods, and runs back to meet Sonic and Chaos. "What's going on?"

Sonic steps up to stand beside him. "Knuckles, you remember back on the ARK when you used the Master Emerald to neutralize the power of the Chaos Emeralds?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, do you think you can do it backwards?"

Chaos specifies, "I believe that you can use the Master Emerald to draw energy from the Flow of Chaos into the Chaos Emeralds more rapidly than would naturally occur."

"I don't know what any of that means, but I can try." He places the Master Emerald firmly on the ground, and Sonic drops the drained Chaos Emeralds in a circle around it. Knuckles places his hand on the Emerald, and takes a deep breath in to begin the prayer.

A strangely echoing voice of Lumis booms, "We can't allow you to continue any further!" The group looks up to see a trio of semi-mechanical Lumis clones descending towards them. One of them still appears to have a damaged shoulder, revealing the liquid light underneath. The real Lumis still floats silently beneath the ever-brightening sun. The center clone points its hand at them, preparing to fire its beam of golden energy. "You will not stop the Ritual of Illumination!"

Before it gets the chance to fire, its hand is smashed to pieces by Amy's swinging hammer. Amy looks up at the clones with a smirk. "I think we have some unfinished business."

Sonic shouts, "Amy!? What about Eggman?"

"Don't worry, Tails has it covered!"

In the battle with Eggman, Tails flies back and forth above the mech's head, dodging swipes from the staff, and getting off rapid-fire shots with his blaster whenever he can. Amy leaps back into her own battle, where the three Lumis clones link hands and begin to glow.

Sonic looks to Knuckles. "Alright, hurry this up! We're getting spread too thin, and we're running out of time!"

"Quiet down, I need to concentrate." He takes a deep breath once again. "The servers are…the seven Chaos. Chaos is power…power is enriched by the heart. The Controller is the one that unifies the Chaos." Knuckles looks over to Sonic as the Master Emerald takes on a brilliant glow. "Great and powerful Master Emerald, we need your power! Now, restore the energy of the Chaos Emeralds!" The mighty gem flashes brilliantly. And when the light subsides…nothing happens.

Sonic shouts, "Hey, what gives!? Nothing happened!"

Knuckles concurs, "It didn't work. There's nothing else I can do."

Chaos questions, "What about the other half?"

Knuckles cocks an eyebrow. "Other…half?"

"Yes. The other half. Of the chant. The one you were just saying." Knuckles continues to give him a vacant look of utter confusion. "Alright, listen closely."

Amy athletically leaps over the golden energy beam, and spins into a powerful hammer strike. The three Lumis clones appear to have merged into a single, multi-limbed half-mechanical monster. Its shoulder, and now two of its many clawed hands, slowly drip the viscous golden fluid, the machinery once holding them together having been broken. Still, its many remaining hands attack Amy relentlessly. Even against such an onslaught, Amy is still able to stay unharmed quite elegantly. As a hand tries to sweep underneath her, she leaps up and spins around before slamming on top of it, destroying it like the others.

Eggman cackles at Tails. "Oh ho ho ho! All alone, fox boy? I'll try not to make you give up _too_ easily." The Egg Angel swipes its staff once again.

Tails dodges by falling out of the air, and landing on the ground. "Face it, Eggman. We've been here before. I don't need anyone's help to take you down!" He takes off along the ground, in a circle around the mech, propelling himself forward with his tails. As he does, he begins to fiddle with the controls of his blaster.

The Egg Angel fires its own beam of light at Tails, but Tails manages to stay ahead while he works. Eggman sneers, "And how do you expect to do anything with _that_ little thing?"

"Hey, little things can pack a _big_ punch!" He holds the blaster, which has begun emitting a loud whine steadily increasing in pitch, high above his head, then hurls it straight at the Egg Angel. As it's about to hit the mech, it suddenly explodes in a massive static pulse, electrifying and stunning every part of the robot it passes through. As Tails runs for the backside of the deactivated mech, he thinks, _"There goes the last fake Emerald."_

Eggman shouts furiously, "What have you done!? Systems aren't responding! I can't move!"

Tails tears off a back panel and immediately begins messing with wires and circuitry on the inside. "It'll probably save you some trouble if you just eject and get out of here now. We have a bigger problem to deal with."

"Preposterous! Power is already returning! You've failed, fox boy!"

"Well, I warned you." Tails steps away as the mech reactivates, and immediately begins flailing its arms wildly.

"What!? I don't have any control! What did you do!?" The mech spins, flails, and stumbles all the way across the platform, until one particularly strong swipe of the arm causes the mech's staff to slice straight through the stomach of the giant Lumis clone, severing it in two, and splattering the floor with the golden fluid inside.

Amy stumbles back to avoid the sudden chaos, but her foot slips as she reaches the sheer edge of the platform. At the last moment, she manages to grab onto the lip of the cliff with one hand, dangling dangerously above the magma as the Egg Angel and the mechanical parts of Lumis crash into the pool below her. Amy tries to pull herself up, but only ends up loosening her grip. "Sonic! Help me!"

 **To be continued…**


	29. S0 E25: Light and Dark Part 2

**Lux Volcano**

Amy stumbles backwards. Her foot slips as she reaches the sheer edge of the platform. At the last moment, she manages to grab onto the lip of the cliff with one hand, dangling dangerously above the magma as Eggman's mech crashes into the pool below her. Amy tries to pull herself up, but only ends up loosening her grip. "Sonic! Help me!"

Sonic looks up as he hears the shout. "Amy!" He runs for her as fast as he can go.

Inch by inch, Amy's fingers slip away from the cliff face. She finally loses her grip altogether, and starts to fall. She shuts her eyes in fear of what's to come. Then a hand grabs onto hers, arresting her fall. "Oh, Sonic, you…" She opens her eyes. "Tails?"

Tails gives her a smirk as he flies her back onto solid ground. "Sorry, that was my bad. I didn't mean to make it go _quite_ that crazy."

Sonic meets them as Tails lets Amy back down on solid ground. "Amy, are you alright?"

Amy can't help but blush. "Yeah. I'm okay. I guess…I have Tails to thank for that."

"Well, I'm glad you're safe. And Tails…nice work." Tails gives a beaming smile at the praise. "Now come on. The show's about to start."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 25**

 **Dawn of Chaos, Part 6: Light and Dark Part 2**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

Chaos looks Knuckles in the eyes. "Are you _sure_ that you have it? I can repeat it again, if you need me to."

"No, I've got it this time."

"Then begin."

"Right." He once again takes a deep breath. "The servers are…the seven Chaos…"

Eggman flies up towards the opening in the volcano in his ejected Egg Mobile, until he floats face-to-face with Lumis. "Hey! Hey, Lumis! Aren't you paying attention!? We're losing down there!"

"Silence. I require concentration."

"And _I_ require the power you promised me! Give me the Emerald, and I can finish them!"

"The anchor is necessary for the ritual."

"If I don't get the power you promised, there won't _be_ any ritual!"

"No."

"What!?

"I said _no_! Don't you understand, you disgusting fool!? This power was never intended for you! Now get out of my sight, and await your deserved fate, villain!"

Knuckles continues, "Chaos is power, power is enriched by the heart!" Chaos begins to mouth along with him, "The heart…is the spring…from which emotion flows. Emotion exists…in the Light, and in the Dark. The Light and the Dark live in ever-shifting Balance. The Balance must be maintained by a Controller. The Controller serves to unify the Chaos! And the seven Chaos Emeralds are the servers! In this circle, a great power is born! The power to prevent the world's destruction!" The Master Emerald has long since lifted from its place on the ground, and begun rotating rapidly through the air. But still, the Chaos Emeralds are unaffected.

Chaos nods. "Again."

Knuckles starts from the beginning, and this time Chaos speaks the chant as well. "The servers are the seven Chaos! Chaos is power enriched by the heart! The heart is the spring from which emotion flows! Emotion exists in the Light and in the Dark! The Light and Dark live in ever-shifting Balance! The Balance must be maintained by a Controller! The Controller serves to unify the Chaos! And the seven Chaos Emeralds are the servers! In this circle, a great power is born! The power to prevent the world's destruction!" Seven arcs of lightning-like energy fly from the Master Emerald, impacting each of the seven dull Chaos Emeralds, and causing them to lift up into the air along with it. Despite the blinding light, Knuckles concludes on his own, "Great and powerful Master Emerald, we need your power! Now, restore the energy of the Chaos Emeralds!"

In the most brilliant rainbow-colored flash yet seen, the Chaos Emeralds light up with the Master Emerald's power. As the light clears, Sonic gapes in awe. "Wow." Each Chaos Emerald, floating slowly around the Master Emerald, casts out an Emerald-shaped aura, many times its own size. Sonic and Knuckles glance at each other for a moment in recollection. "What's happening to them?"

Chaos nods slowly. "Of course…the True Power of the Emeralds."

"True Power? What does that mean?"

"The Master Emerald…the Controller…the Guardian…and the Lords of Chaos. When all concur that the fate of the Balance is at stake…the Super power of the Chaos Emeralds is unlocked." He stares deeply at the large Emerald auras. "Even now, the Super Emeralds have not taken on their true form. The time is not yet right. But I can replace that power. Now, Controller…take the Emeralds."

Sonic nods, and reaches his hand out towards the Emeralds. One by one, they leave their orbit of the Master Emerald, and begin to circle him instead. He once again closes his eyes, and clenches a fist.

Eggman's Egg Mobile crashes into the wall, and Eggman tumbles out onto the ground. In a fury, he climbs to his feet, and reaches for something in his back pocket. But he freezes as he notices Tails and Amy standing directly in front of him. Amy shakes her head at him. "We won't let you get in Sonic's way!"

Eggman chuckles a bit as he relaxes his hand. "You know what? You're right. Someone needs to knock that _traitor_ down a peg. And as much as I hate to admit it, Sonic is the best one to do it. Can't I at least watch?"

Tails glares at him suspectingly. "We'll be keeping an eye on you."

Sonic is lifted into the air by the power of the Emeralds. As they circle around him faster and faster, his fur first takes on a golden glow, which progressively grows brighter and whiter. As he opens his violet-red eyes, the Emeralds are absorbed into his very being.

On the ground, the large pile of golden fluid that once made up the Lumis clones begins to bubble. By a magnetic-like force, it starts to be pulled away from the ground in streams, rising as if in a cyclone towards Lumis.

Chaos offers his hand out to Sonic, and Sonic takes it. Chaos pulls Sonic's hand closer to him, and lays it on the Moonstone in his chest. Then he closes his eyes, and begins to fade away. Sonic tightens his grip on the Moonstone as Chaos' body disappears entirely. Then the Moonstone's rainbow-colored aura begins to wash over him, until he too takes on a flashing, seven-colored aura. Chaos' voice calls out in his head, _"You are ready."_

As the flying gold material reaches Lumis, it begins to circle him in a continuous stream. Suddenly, all of it is absorbed into him at once. The extra material causes his limbs to lengthen, his edges to sharpen, and many more sharp points to be created. Over all, he becomes much larger. "Ah…finally whole again."

Hyper Sonic floats up to meet him at eye level. "One last chance, Lumis. Hand over the fake Emerald, and we can still make this right."

" _You_ offer _me_ an ultimatum? How cute. Now, here is my counterproposal. Sit back down, and enjoy yourself as fear and pain are removed from your world. Seriously, why do you want to make this so difficult?" Lumis looks up into the air. The backwards eclipse is now over halfway completed. "The ritual is already near completion. I've at last gathered enough power to defend the ritual on my own. And although I don't wish to bring serious harm to you, be assured that I will defend it to my last breath on this Earth." To prove the point, Lumis directs his hand at the ever-darkening fake Emerald, and a spherical barrier of yellow energy forms around it.

"Too bad. We might have to make that happen." Almost instantaneously, Hyper Sonic flashes into a strike directly at Lumis, knocking him back only slightly.

"Is that all you can do?" Lumis charges an orb of light between his hands, and releases it as a beam at Hyper Sonic.

Hyper Sonic flashes out of the way of the attack, soaring in circles around Lumis as he keeps ahead of the beam. The beam causes tons of rock to tumble down from the walls it carves circles into, and the rubble splashes into the magma below. Chaos speaks into Sonic's head, _"Let's show him something else, shall we?"_ Sonic nods. He holds his hand out to the side, and begins to charge it with yellow energy. He shouts as Chaos thinks, "Chaos Spear!"

As the impressively large spear attack flies at Lumis, he crosses his arms in front of him, creating another golden barrier. The attack shatters the shield, but leaves Lumis unharmed.

Sonic thinks, _"Cool. Remind me to tell Shadow that I stole another one of his moves."_

Chaos thinks back, _"That was my doing. You wouldn't be able to perform that move under your own power. And who is Shadow?"_

Hyper Sonic flashes out of the way of a series of swipes from Lumis' glowing claws. _"I'll explain later."_ He dashes in for another strike, once again knocking Lumis back only slightly.

Lumis taunts, "Please, keep wasting your time with such useless attacks. Every moment is another closer to my victory."

Sonic thinks, _"He's right. If we don't find some kind of weakness, we'll never be able to get to that Emerald in time."_

 _"We already know his weakness. Darkness."_

Sonic thinks sarcastically, _"Sure, let's just put out the sun. That'll solve our problems."_ Sonic dodges again as Lumis slices vertically with an energy beam, sending more earth splashing into the magma below. _"Hey, look down there!"_ He points down at the magma, where a few shards of grey gem float.

 _"I'm using your eyes, remember?"_

 _"Yeah, whatever. Those are shards from the fake Emeralds. If the heat from the magma was able to shatter them like that, maybe it'll do the same to him!"_

 _"It's worth a try."_

Already acting, Hyper Sonic soars straight upwards, out of the volcano, at an incredible speed. Lumis looks up after him. "Finally decided to flee? I'm glad you could see it my way."

Sonic soars up and up, faster than sound, faster than light, past the planet's atmosphere, finally stopping beneath the light of the eclipse. Then he dives straight back downwards.

Knuckles looks up through the opening in the volcano, shielding his eyes from the eclipse's light. "He's coming back…right?"

Amy jabs him in the side with an elbow. "Of course he's coming back! What kind of question is that?"

Tails points up excitedly. "Look, I see him!"

Hyper Sonic creates ripples through the air as he flies downwards at incredible speeds. Lumis looks up at him in surprise. He once again crosses his arms in front of him, somewhat frantically shouting, "Chaos Shield!" Sonic impacts the shield at full force, pushing Lumis down and away from the volcano's opening. He pushes back hard enough to stop moving just inches away from the surface of the magma. Sonic continues to drive against the shield, but they appear to be at a dead standoff. Until Lumis forces one arm past the shield, sending Sonic flying into the rock wall.

"Enough!" He soars back up to the encapsulated Emerald, now seeming to leak shadowy energy out into its bubble. "I will not let you interfere! I will do whatever it takes! Even if it means…" He reaches a trembling claw for the Emerald, passing through the bubble. "How disgusting…" Turning his head away, he wraps his entire hand around the shadowy gem. Instantly, the color of the gem washes over Lumis' golden exterior, turning him purple and black. Many more sharp points jut out from throughout his body, giving him a much more menacing appearance.

Sonic, recovering from his crash, wipes off the corner of his mouth. "Going for a new style? It's about time. That old one was _way_ out of date." He dashes at Black Lumis.

Wordlessly, Lumis fires a massive, continuous blast of dark energy.

"Whoa!" At the last moment, he crosses his own arms in front of him, as both he and Chaos shout, "Chaos Shield!" The attack is diverted around the barrier he creates in front of him, blasting the wall behind him instead. The moment Lumis' attack relents, he attacks back. "Chaos Spear!"

Lumis effortlessly swats the attack away, and readies for another dark blast. With a moment more to prepare, Hyper Sonic flashes out of the way in anticipation of the attack. But the attack never comes. Lumis growls and shields his face from the flash that Hyper Sonic created.

Chaos calls out, _"Of course! His new power has come with a new vulnerability! He's become weak to your light!"_

Sonic looks up. _"And the longer this takes, the more light there'll be."_

" _We can't waste time like that. We're running out of time, and I sense that we're running out of energy as well. We must finish this."_

Sonic makes another flash as he dashes to the other side of Lumis. He continues to circle around him in a triangular pattern, creating flashes all around him, dazing and confusing him. In a sudden change, he flashes upwards, then strikes down, knocking Lumis down slightly. In an instant, he's back up, striking down again, making another flash with each movement, forcing Lumis back towards the magma inch by inch. After one powerful strike, he flies up higher before directing his hands downwards. "Chaos Shield!"

Lumis becomes trapped on all sides by the barrier of light. Realizing this, he lets out a terrifying screech, and begins to slash at the barrier over and over again.

Sonic, clearly strained by each of the slashes, still pushes harder with his hands, as the barrier begins to push Lumis further downwards, forcing his feet into the magma as he lets out an even louder screech. The crystal of his legs begins to crack as he's pushed ever further downwards. Sonic mutters quietly, "I'm sorry." With one final push, Black Lumis is forced all the way under.

Tails, Knuckles, and Amy all cheer as Sonic, rapidly losing his color, floats gently to the ground. In a flash, one hedgehog is split back into two, both panting and kneeling on the ground. The seven Emeralds, returned to their normal forms, orbit around them for a moment, before scattering in all directions. Still, Chaos walks to the edge of the platform, and looks down into the bubbling magma. Out of the turmoil, a strange black and purple gemstone rises. Mostly spherical at the center, it has many points jutting out of it, resembling a star. It moves until it floats slightly above his open hand. "Not even you deserve this level of corruption." He places his other hand near the side of the gem, and begins to draw out from it the blackened fake Emerald. The star gem is returned to Lumis' natural gold color. "Now…return to whence you came, Outlaw." He lifts the star gem slightly higher, and it begins to dissolve into a fine yellow dust, which scatters, sparkling, into the air before disappearing from view.

Sonic steps up behind him. "So is that it? Did we do it?"

Chaos looks up into the sky. Only the tiniest sliver of darkness remains behind the near-full sun. "Without the Outlaw, the Ritual of Illumination cannot progress any further. It is over."

Sonic looks up with him, and breathes a sigh. "Chaos…when I was…up there, with Lumis… He showed me…he showed me a perfect world. He showed me what he was creating. And it was…beautiful. I can't help but think…that we did the wrong thing by stopping him."

Chaos closes his eyes and nods slowly. "I see… Perhaps another hypothetical scenario is in order." He continues to stare into the frozen sun. "Lumis wished to create a world of nothing but Light. Imagine a world…with day, but no night. Sunlight is the fuel of entire ecosystems on this planet. The warmth it provides allows for life to exist. But if there were no night to balance it…the heat would grow out of proportion. Water would dry away. Without the water, plant life would die. Eventually, the world would become completely uninhabitable. Meanwhile…the opposite side of the planet could see only night. Water would freeze, and plant life would die without energy from the sun. The Balance would still find a way. Despite the concept of increasing the Light in the world, the Balance would remain the same, and yet everything would end up dead. That is the world that Lumis wanted to create."

"But…what about…"

"Perhaps something more drastic? Very well. Imagine a world with life, but no death. It sounds like a miracle, doesn't it? Give it a century, maybe less. Life would grow, and grow, and grow, never countered in the slightest. There's no room on this planet for such life. There aren't enough resources. Life would abound, but the quality of life would be practically zero. Conditions would be so poor as to make many, even most, wish for death, rather than such suffering. Does that sound like a perfect world to you?"

Sonic closes his eyes and thinks. Then he looks up as Knuckles puts a hand on his shoulder. "No need to make it so complicated. No one who steals the Master Emerald is with worth giving a second thought." Tails and Amy also give him supportive smiles.

Sonic gives Knuckles a smirk. "I'm sure Rouge would be very offended." Everyone gives a laugh, except for Chaos, who lets out a grunt, and clenches his eyes. Sonic looks over at him. "Everything alright?"

Chaos stares at the fake black Emerald still in his hand. "Once this anchor is destroyed…the world will be returned to Balance."

Eggman interjects, "I'm afraid I'll have to stop you there!" High in the air, he holds some sort of remote. With a smirk and a chuckle, he presses his thumb on a button.

Suddenly, Chaos collapses to his hands and knees.

"Chaos! What's wrong!?" Sonic tries to put a hand on his shoulder, but he suddenly turns at him, baring sharp fangs and glaring with ominously glowing eyes. Sonic looks down to the Moonstone on his chest. The purple color at its center seems to bleed outwards, completely enveloping the six other colors, until the Moonstone matches the color of the fake Emerald in his hand. Attached to the top of the Moonstone, almost unnoticeable before, is a tiny device bearing the emblem of Eggman. His fur turns pitch black, as he takes on a shadowy aura. Then the bones in his body seem to break as he grows to monstrous proportions. Suddenly, he swats Sonic away with the back of one hand, sending him flying back.

"Sonic!" Amy runs after him.

Knuckles charges angrily at Eggman. "What did you do to Chaos!?"

"Nah ah ah." Eggman waves the remote around in front him. "I can make your friend do anything I want. And I mean _anything_." Knuckles skids to a halt. "Come any closer, and you'll get to see for yourself." He gives a slight chuckle. As Amy helps Sonic to his feet, Eggman continues, "You didn't really think that I wasn't _planning_ on being betrayed, did you? How many times do you think I've done this? Thanks to my genius, I now have the Lord of Chaos, _and_ the power of Darkness, at my disposal. How about a little demonstration, new slave? Teach these fools a lesson."

Tails, the only one still near Chaos, is the first target for attack. Chaos leaps at him with incredible speed, and Tails barely lifts into the air in time to avoid. But some sort of dark spin attack knocks him back to the ground.

"Tails!" Sonic runs back at Chaos, but is once again swatted away. Chaos looks up to see Amy coming down from above with a hammer, rolls out of the way to let her smash into the ground, then delivers a kick that similarly sends her flying. Without even needing to look, he steps quickly out of the way of Knuckles' first punch. Knuckles continues to throw a flurry of punches, but Chaos is almost effortlessly able to dodge every single one, before throwing a punch of his own that sends Knuckles crashing on top of Sonic.

Eggman can't help but grin. "Nice!"

Tails and Amy help Sonic and Knuckles back to their feet. Knuckles looks to Sonic. "He's too powerful for us. How're we supposed to beat him without the Chaos Emeralds?"

Sonic looks straight at the black Moonstone on Chaos' chest. "I have an idea. You're all gonna have to hold him down, just for a few seconds. I'll take care of the rest."

Amy questions, "But how do we get that close to him?"

"We have to go in as a team, he can't fight off all of us at once."

They all nod. "Right."

"Then let's go!" At once, they all charge at Chaos.

Eggman shouts, "Enough fooling around! Finish them!"

Sonic comes in point with a spindash. But at the last moment, he leaps into the air above Chaos, avoiding another swat. While Chaos is distracted looking up at Sonic, Knuckles goes in for a punch, which Chaos still manages to sidestep, only to duck under Amy's hammer a moment later. But then, Sonic attacks straight downwards, landing a solid hit and knocking Chaos back a step. Before he can recover, Tails grabs his arms and holds them together behind his back. "Now, guys!" Knuckles and Amy each grab one of Chaos' shoulders, and push him down down to his knees. Before he can knock them away, Sonic dives at him with his arm outstretched, until he wraps his hand around the Moonstone, and everything goes black.

—–—

Much like the void of light from before, all around now lies a void of shadows and darkness. Every so often, a small swath of color appears, only to be chaotically blasted away by the darkness a moment later. Sonic calls out through the void, "Chaos! Chaos, where are you!?" Suddenly, he wraps his arms around himself and starts to shiver. But he shakes it off. He calls out again, "Chaos!"

Some distance away, curled up and shivering far more violently than Sonic, floats Chaos in his normal form, his fur a sickly green color. He mutters quietly, over and over again, "Control… Control… Control…"

"Chaos!" Sonic floats towards him, and puts a hand on his shoulder.

Startled, Chaos looks up to Sonic with a gasp. "Controller!? No, no, no, you shouldn't be here!" He wraps his hands around his head and clenches his eyes shut. "You have to leave, now!"

"I'm not leaving without you! You have to fight this!"

"Don't you get it!?" He becomes the red of his rage. "I _can't_ fight this! The Doctor's device has destroyed my self-control! The Darkness of the world has corrupted me completely! It's all I can manage to keep control of my own mind in here! Controller, you have to destroy me! Otherwise, the thing that I've become will destroy _everything_!"

"I won't do that to you! You're a living person, and you're my friend! I'm not gonna let you die!"

Chaos reverts to his natural, white color. "This is the end of me, Controller. I accept that fate. I knew from the moment I volunteered to leave the Realm of Chaos that there would be such risk. My only regret is that I could not teach you more in my brief time here."

"Then teach me more! I will learn everything that you have to teach! Because this isn't the end! This is the beginning! The beginning of _us_! Together, _we_ can fight this! I know we can!" Sonic extends his hand out to Chaos.

Chaos look up into Sonic's determined eyes, as his fur shifts to a soft purple. "If you believe it…it must be possible." He firmly takes Sonic's hand.

—–—

 **The Realm of Chaos**

Lumis looks out into the empty void. "So…here we are again. Ten thousand years later, and it's all the same. So what're you going to do to me? Silence me like last time, just so that I can break out again in another ten thousand years? Or are you going to get rid of me once and for all, breaking your _precious morals_?" He waits in silence. "Well? Answer me!"

After a long pause, a chorus of voices answers back from nowhere, "No…"

"No!? What do you mean, ' _no_ '!?"

"For ten thousand years…you waited in silence…and all the while, thought of nothing but how to save the world. Your methods are misguided. But your conviction is sound. We imprisoned you for wanting exactly what we ourselves desire. For that, we were in error."

"I'm sorry, did I hear that right? Did you, the Lords of Chaos, just admit that you were _wrong_?"

"That is correct. So long as you agree to respect the wishes of the collective…we wish to reinstate your position among us. We have long been missing a voice for the Light."

"Uh…I…"

"We see it in your heart. When you touched the mind of the Controller, you too were touched by him. You were willing to use the Darkness to protect your Light. You took a step towards Balance."

"The Darkness…I created a weapon of Darkness! It must be destroyed! The Controller, did he destroy it!?"

"As we speak…the Controller is trapped in a realm between realms, locked in battle against the Darkness." With those words, a hazy image appears off in the distance, of Sonic clasping hands with Chaos.

"Just them against all the Darkness of the world!? They'll never survive!"

"Then affirm your place as the voice of Light. Assist them."

"Of course…" Lumis looks back to the image. "Sonic! Sonic!" As if in slow motion, the hazy image of Sonic turns his head to look at him. "Take my Light! Use it as your own! Use it to destroy the Darkness!"

Lumis directs his hands at the image of Sonic, and generates a blinding flash of light that encompasses everything.

The chorus of voices, Lumis included, echoes, "Good luck…Chaos…"

—–—

A cake shaped like Sonic's head lies flat on the table. A knife cuts down, slicing off one of the spikes. Tails hands the plate of cake to Sonic. "It's been sitting out here for…almost two days. Are you sure?"

In answer, Sonic digs his fork in, and takes a comically large bite. Still chewing, he starts, "Mm! Tails, this cake is delicious! Better than last year's!"

Knuckles pounds his fist on the opposite side of the table. "Well, don't be a cake-hog! Send some of that over here!"

Tails happily cuts two more slices for Knuckles and Amy before turning back to Sonic. "I guess a lot of things've been better this year. I'm just sorry that we couldn't do a proper celebration yesterday."

Still with a mouthful of cake, Sonic answers, "Are you kidding? What kind of 'proper celebration' would it've been without my best friends here?" Knuckles and Amy both take pride in this.

"Please…" Chaos, seemingly returned to normal, steps from the back of the room. "…the consumption of one's head…is it symbolic? The passage of knowledge, perhaps?" Pretty much everyone in the room facepalms.

"No, it's not a symbol. It's a tradition, you eat cake on your birthday." He waves him over with a smile. "Get over here, have some. It's your birthday too."

"This 'birthday'…refers to the anniversary of one's coming into existence, yes?" Sonic nods, as Chaos somewhat reluctantly takes a slice from Tails. "You do realize, I am tens of thousands of years old?"

"Yeah, yeah, but you were _born_ yesterday. Like me. Now shut up and eat your cake, birthday boy."

Holding the fork somewhat awkwardly, Chaos slowly takes a small bite of cake up to his mouth. The moment the food touches his tongue, his face lights up, as his fur turns to the same light cyan-blue color of the frosting. "This…" He starts to chew slowly, savoring every moment. "This is…" He swallows loudly. "This is Light like I've never experienced before. People eat head cakes like this every day?"

Sonic chuckles. "Well, they're not all shaped like heads, but yeah. There are lots of people with lots of birthdays."

"Well in that case…" He gently sets the plate down. "…I genuinely fear for the Balance of this world."

Everyone bursts out laughing. Chaos looks around at them in confusion as they continue to laugh. Knuckles jests, "Don't worry, you just haven't tried any spicy food yet. You'll get that Balance figured out."

Sonic continues, "Somebody get this guy a chili dog, let's get it over with now."

Chaos at first scratches his head at all of the laughter, but then cracks a smile, and finally starts to laugh along with them.

"There we go, _that's_ the smile I was looking for!" Finally, the laughter in the room starts to die back down. "Now you pick that cake back up, and you finish it."

"But–"

"Ah!" Sonic puts a hand up to silence him. "I know that you want to finish the cake, so finish the cake. Trust me."

Tails and Amy cheer, "Yeah, eat it!"

Chaos picks his plate back up, and steals a few glances around as if in guilt. Then he starts to shovel huge bites of the cake into his mouth as quickly as he possibly can. Everyone starts to laugh again.

Tails approaches Sonic. "Umm…Sonic?"

"What's up?"

"As part of the celebration…I was thinking about maybe having that beach day we've been talking about all year. Do you think maybe tomorrow?"

"Oh…I'd love to, but…I promised Chaos that we'd start training tomorrow. He has a lot to teach me."

Chaos, his cake nearly finished, freezes and looks up at the sound of his name, still with a mouth stuffed full. When he realizes that no one is talking to him, he looks longingly back down at what little cake he has left, and prepares to dig in, only to be stopped again as Knuckles approaches him.

"Chaos…back there…in that fight…you really…"

Chaos once again swallows loudly. "I only gave you the words. It was you who unlocked the power of the Emeralds. You make an excellent Guardian, K'waqochu."

"You can call me Knuckles. There's a reason I don't use that name."

Chaos gives him an affirmative nod before returning his attention to his cake. But he is once again interrupted as Amy approaches him.

"Hey…I know that things have been pretty crazy ever since we met…and I wanted to make sure that you're doing alright."  
"You're hoping that my first experiences in this world didn't leave a…bad taste in my mouth, so to speak?"

"There's a lot to love about this world, and the worst of it was one of the first things you ever saw. I just…hope you understand that."

"Trust me…" He takes the last of his cake, and shoves into his mouth in one big mouthful. "…I know now how sweet this life is." He swallows. "And I have you to thank for it."

"Me?"

"Of course. You were the one who kept my destructive emotions in check. You were the one who convinced me, against my instincts, to calm my mind, and thus find the truth. You helped me find my purpose in this life. Imagine if you hadn't been there. I would never have calmed by the time my mind was corrupted. I would have made no bonds. The Controller wouldn't have saved me, he likely would have destroyed me. In that sense, you've saved my life. Sincerely, thank you."

As Tails takes the first bite of the slice he's cut for himself, he questions to Sonic, "So where are you two gonna go?"

Sonic puts a hand to his chin. "Good question. I guess I hadn't thought of that."

"Well, you're always welcome here at the lab."

"That's nice, but I think Chaos had something a little more…quiet, in mind."

"In that case…there's this old shack a little ways out into the jungle. It's a little rudimentary, but it's nice and secluded, and it's not too far from here either."

"Sounds great. We'll have to check it out. Right, Chaos?"

Chaos is holding his plate out to Tails. "I would like more of the head cake, please." Everyone, including Chaos, shares in one last good laugh.

 **The end of one adventure…**

 **And the beginning of another.**

* * *

 **I know it's been a while since I first said this, but now that this arc is done, the series is officially on break. I don't expect there to be any more episodes for the remainder of 2017. Once I finally play and finish Sonic Forces, I will then have to start a new episode from scratch. On the bright side, there will be a lot more Forces tie-ins to come, once this break is over.**

 **In the meantime, please, drop some reviews! I need your feedback, good or bad, or this series can never get any better! Now would be the perfect time, since any advice I get from you could be implemented in the very next episode! It doesn't even have to be advice, just tell me about a scene you liked or didn't like, and I can work from there! Anything at all would be much appreciated.** **And as always, thank you very much for being a reader! Your support makes this all feel worthwhile, and encourages me to always keep on going.**

 **-And before I say goodbye to you, one more last fist bump!**


	30. S0 E26: Infinite Possibilities

**Several months later**

 **Approximately two years after Sonic Forces**

"In the darkest of times…the world needs a hero. So long as there is Darkness, there shall be a hero to fight against it. That is the way of the world. But one hero is not enough. No amount of conviction, no strength of will in a single individual can possibly counter the sort of massive upheaval that Darkness can bring. Even a hero needs help. _That_ is where we come in. When we came to understand this need for a hero, we took it upon ourselves to grant this hero the help that they need, by taking control of what was already present. There will always be a hero. And we will always find that hero, to grant them access to the power of Chaos. Now, Controller Sonic…open your eyes."

Slowly, Sonic obeys. He gasps at the seven brilliant gems arrayed on the wooded ground before him. "The Chaos Emeralds! You found all of them!?"

The white-furred hedgehog across from him, with spikes arranged like a crown around his head, gives a nod in response. "I want you to arrange them."

"Arrange them how?"

"Any order. Do what speaks to you. Consider it a test."

Sonic starts to rub his chin as he contorts his face in thought. "A test, huh? Maybe I should've studied harder." He continues to think for a while. Finally, he reaches down to move the first Emerald. When he's finished with all of them, the Emeralds have been arranged in a circular pattern. The top half of the circle is composed of the yellow, purple, and cyan Emeralds. The bottom half, slightly separated, of the green, red, and blue. The white Emerald lies in the center.

The other hedgehog takes a moment to analyze the shape. "Can you tell me…what this arrangement means?"

Sonic thinks for a moment. "I…don't really know. I guess it just felt…balanced. Does it mean anything, Chaos?"

Chaos the Hedgehog answers slowly, "I believe it does." He points first to the yellow Emerald. As he does so, his own fur changes to the same shade of shining yellow. He speaks with conviction behind his voice, "Willpower." He moves to the purple, and his fur once again shifts. He says softly, "Attachment…love, if you'd rather." He goes to cyan with a smile. "Joy." Next, he goes to the bottom row. "And to counter them…fear…rage…and sorrow." Finally, he picks up the white Emerald in the center, as its color spreads through him. "And in the center of it all, tranquility. Peace."

"So _that's_ what's up with your fur. It's like a Chaos mood ring!"

Chaos breathes out a quiet groan. "If that's what you want to call it." He clears his throat. "Now, I want you to do it again. But this time…don't look at it. Let the will of Chaos guide your hands."

"But how will I–"

Chaos raises a hand to stop him. "Don't memorize. Don't keep track. Just close your eyes."

Sonic closes his eyes and gives a nod. "Right." He reaches a hand out, and finds the red Emerald first. He continues to rearrange them from there. He finishes by dropping the yellow Emerald at the top. "There. It's done. …I think." Chaos scrutinizes the shape once again. Five of the Emeralds have been arranged in the shape of an infinity, with the yellow and purple Emeralds placed separately on the top and bottom. "Well? What does it mean this time?"

"I believe…this is a representation of the elements." He points first to the blue Emerald on the bottom-left of the shape. "Torrent." He moves up to the red. "Inferno." To the white at the center. "Frost." He continues along the opposite loop. "To tempest…to terra…back to frost…back to torrent." He starts to draw a circle outside of it all. "And on the outside…shine…to void…to shine again."

"What does all that mean?"

"A lesson for another time, perhaps. But…"

"But what?"

"I sense…an omen. Infinity…is dangerous. All things come to an end. It is part of the natural cycle. That which does not…threatens the Balance. For it cannot be countered. The fact that you were drawn to this pattern…must mean something. I must meditate on this."

"So that's it for today's lesson?"

"I suppose so. Unless… Perhaps you should join me. Meditation can–"

The door to the old wooden shack bursts open, revealing an exasperated Tails on the other side. "Sonic! There's trouble!"

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 26**

 **Forces of Chaos Prologue: Infinite Possibilities**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor  
_

* * *

Sonic gives a low whistle. He runs his hand down the slanted, hard-angled red wing of what appears to be a fighter plane, with no propeller. "You built this?"

Tails proudly pats a hand on one of the plane's turbine engines, located beneath one of the wings. "I call her the _Mach Tornado_. She's all decked out with twin turbo engines, high-powered laser blasters, and a few other surprises. And she's all yours."

"Oh no. You built her, you fly her, you own her." He hops up onto the wing. "But I'll be glad to take her for a ride."

Tails flies up, and settles down in the pilot's seat. "Fine, we'll talk about it later." He presses a button in the cockpit, and the engines roar to life.

A windshield automatically rises up in front of Tails' head, while two metal clamps wrap around Sonic's feet. "Whoa!"

Tails yells over the roar of the engines, "Don't worry! That's just to keep you secure! We're gonna go _real_ fast!"

"We're gonna what!?"

Tails rummages around in the cockpit for a moment, and finds two small devices. He tosses one to Sonic, and fastens the other to his ear. Once both of their communicators are in, he taps his and repeats, "I said, this thing is fast."

"Oh really?" Sonic crouches down, and places a hand flat on the wing in front of him. "We'll have to see about that. I'm ready when you are."

"Alright. Engaging engines…now!" With the press of another button, the plane jets forward rapidly, lifting off the ground within seconds, and soaring off into the evening sky.

Sonic closes his eyes, and takes a moment to feel the wind on his face. "Ah…just like a brisk jog." He lets out a chuckle. "You did good, Tails." The sunset, from these heights, brilliantly bathes the entire sky in color. "So what's the story?"

"I detected a crazy energy reading. Some kind of dimensional breach in the atmosphere."

"Sounds dangerous."

"Wait until you hear where it came from."

"Well? Don't keep me in suspense."

"Eggmanland."

"Eggmanland? Didn't I tear that place down?"

"Well, most of the manmade structure that you didn't already destroy ended up sinking into the Earth's mantle. But a majority of the landmass is still there. Besides, don't you remember? Eggmanland became an official country of the United Federation a few months ago." He shakes his head with a sigh. "I don't get politics. I'll stick to building planes."

"Right, I remember. So then we'll be trespassing?"

"You bet!"

Sonic gives a smirk. "Just keeps getting more interesting. So, we know the who, the what, and the where. Any idea why?"

"Well…Eggman's been pretty quiet the past couple of months. Whatever he's doing, he could've been working on it for a while now. Could be anything."

Sonic shakes his head. "He never stops, does he? It never ends…"

"Do you think maybe we should've brought Chaos too?"

"Nah. He seemed pretty intent on meditating. Besides…" He pulls out the red Emerald and twirls it around in his hand for a few moments. "We have the Emeralds. This'll be a piece of cake."

"If you say so. But I've got a bad feeling about this."

—–—

Sonic leaps from the wing of the _Mach Tornado_ , and spins through the air before landing in an impressive crouch on the ground. He gets up to look around. Broken and crumbled archways which were once lit up in neon now lie dim and scattered all around the dented, hole-filled metal grate that serves as the floor. Lying on the ground in front of him is the severed upper-half of what was once a massive gold-plated statue in the likeness of Eggman. Behind it, a pile of rubble that once served as an avenue into the twisted park now lies topped with a jumbled mess of broken neon letters that once spelled 'EGGMANLAND'. Sonic shakes his head and gives a slight shrug. "Yeesh. And I thought Eggman's tastes were bad before." He shouts much louder, with his hand cupped around his mouth, "Can't even be bothered to clean up, Doc?"

The voice of Eggman answers over a crackling, static-filled loudspeaker, "Ah, Sonic! I knew you'd come back eventually. I do hope you're enjoying this trip to Eggmanland as much as your last."

"The only thing I _enjoyed_ about the last trip was tearing this place down! Clearly, I didn't finish the job."

"Didn't you know, Sonic? In this world, nothing is ever finished. It just goes on and on, in an infinite cycle! But I intend to break that cycle here and now, now that I've perfected my greatest creation!"

"Greatest creation, huh? Like I haven't heard that one before."

Tails runs up to Sonic. "Sonic, something's not right. I'm getting some crazy energy readings, they don't make any sense!"

Sonic tenses up into a fighting stance. "I'm ready for anything you've got, Eggman. Do your worst."

Eggman answers, "Well…if you insist. Time to show the world what you can do, _Infinite_!"

"What!?" Before Sonic can finish his shout, all the world goes mad. As pulses of energy somehow seem to invert the colors of everything they pass, a continuous, horribly low-pitched pulsation reverberates through the park, forcing Sonic and Tails to cover their ears. Amidst the center of the chaos, as if from a glitch in the universe, a black-garbed figure spasmodically materializes from thin air, bathed in a red aura, his face hidden by a silvery mask.

As the clamor calms, the figure drifts down to the floor, and his aura starts to fade. The mask entirely covers the right side of his face, but his hideous red and yellow left eye can still be seen. A violet gem, pulsating with black, hangs from his chest. But something doesn't seem quite right about him. Infinite begins to speak in a deep, distorted voice, "So…the little blue savior. After all this time…you're back for more?"

Sonic looks to the powerful figure nervously. "This isn't possible. Just what are you?"

Infinite uses three fingers to push his mask up against his face. "Didn't you know? You can call me Infinite. And that's all you _need_ to know." Infinite suddenly throws an open hand at Sonic, firing a small energy blast at his feet.

"Whoa!" Sonic barely flips out of the way, and sparks fly at his face as the blast hits the ground in front of him. "You wanna play rough? Let's play rough!" He dashes towards Infinite at top speed.

Infinite takes a quick step to the side, and Sonic rushes right past him. "Pathetic."

Tails shouts from the sidelines, "Sonic, you can't outspeed him! You have to try something else!"

By the time Sonic has stopped and turned back to face his opponent, Infinite has already risen back into the air. He once again throws his hand at Sonic, not even turning to face him. But this time, energy briefly charges in his hand before firing in a continuous crimson laser beam.

Sonic takes off at a run to stay in front of the beam. As it carves a path of destruction behind him, he suddenly turns and leaps directly at the attacker. Infinite is forced to cut off the attack as he dodges out of the way. But Sonic isn't fazed at all, seeming to have been aiming for the broken arch behind Infinite the entire time. He kicks off of it and flies back at Infinite with an even greater speed, momentarily catching him off guard.

Before Infinite can prepare a counterattack, the gem at his chest suddenly flashes once again, and Sonic begins to tumble through the air without any control. "What the–" A Chaos Emerald escapes from him as he flies, trembling as it goes. In a last-second attempt to regain control, he snatches it back from the air and shouts, "Chaos Contro–" A moment too late, he smashes into Infinite's chest with the Emerald, and a blinding flash of white light envelops everything.

—–—

"In the darkest of times…the world needs a hero. So long as there is–"

"Infinite!"

"Ah! What!?" Chaos frantically looks around in confusion.

"Infinite, he was–…" Sonic starts to look around in confusion as well, clutching at his head. "He was just…" He starts to get a better grip on the reality of the small, candle-lit wooden shack that they sit in. The Chaos Emeralds are arrayed at random on the floor in front of him. "How long have I been here?"

Chaos looks at Sonic skeptically. "How _long_? Controller, did you fall _asleep_ during one of my lessons?"

"Asleep? No, it's just…I swear, I was just somewhere else." He thinks harder. "Eggmanland, I was at Eggmanland."

"As far as I'm aware, you've been right here in front of me all evening. You mentioned…Infinite?"

"That's right. I was fighting Infinite. But he…he did…something. And then I was back here again."

Chaos puts a hand to his chin to ponder this. "Hmm…I know nothing of this 'Infinite'. But I do that that which does not end–"

"Is a threat to the Balance, yeah. You said that already."

"But I know for certain that I've never said such a thing to you before. Perhaps…" He looks down to the floor. "Perhaps, in the presence of the seven Emeralds, you have been granted a vision of the future."

"A vision? …I guess that could be it."

"If you have seen into the future…then you should know what happens next."

"What happens next? Well…after we worked with the Emeralds, that's when Tails came in. He burst through the door there, and he said…"

The door to the old wooden shack bursts open, revealing an exasperated Tails on the other side. "Sonic! There's trouble!" He glances with confusion at Sonic, who mouthed exactly what he just said. Even Chaos looks impressed.

Sonic breaks the silence. "I'm all caught up, Tails. Let's get going."

Sonic scoops up the Emeralds and prepares to leave, but Chaos stops him from going with a hand on his shoulder. "Infinity is dangerous. I mean it. I sense a terrible omen in all of this. You must be careful out there. I will meditate on it in your absence."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be fine. He caught me off-guard last time, but now I'm ready." He's already taken his first steps out the door.

Tails gives a look to Chaos, but Chaos only shrugs in response. He goes to meet Sonic outside by the _Mach Tornado_. "Well? What do you think?"

Sonic hops onto the wing. "What? Oh, the plane. Looks great. Let's go."

"Uh…okay." Tails climbs into the pilot's seat just as last time.

—–—

Sonic leaps from the wing of the _Mach Tornado_ , and spins through the air before landing in an impressive crouch on the ground. "Show yourself, Infinite! I know you're there!"

Eggman's voice answers over the loudspeaker, "Eager to meet your demise, are you, hedgehog? Very well. Infinite, let's indulge him, shall we?"

In the same overwhelming chaos as the last time, Infinite appears before him.

Tails runs up, this time just a moment late to see it. "Sonic, be careful! These readings–"

"I've got it, Tails. Just let me take care of this."

Infinite glances for a moment at the fox boy. But then he returns his attention to Sonic. "You seem to show no fear, little hedgehog."

"I know I'm not afraid of you. I can take anything you throw at me!"

Infinite scoffs. "Fine. I will teach you fear. Then pain." Just as last time, he throws a small energy burst from his hand.

This time, Sonic rushes straight at Infinite, sidestepping the attack along the way. Even with less time to react, Infinite still effortlessly steps out of the way.

Tails shouts from the sidelines, "Sonic, you can't outspeed him! You–"

"Shut up, Tails!"

As Infinite rises into the air, he speaks calmly, "The fox boy is right. How many times must you try that before you realize that it won't work?" He pushes his mask up. "You truly must be insane."

"Wait…what!?"

"Did you think I didn't remember? How foolish of you. Almost as foolish as your belief that _you_ are the fastest thing alive." In almost no time at all, Infinite suddenly appears just inches from Sonic's face. "You are nothing. Just an obstacle in my way."

Sonic dives back just in time to take off away from Infinite's laser attack, which carves a line of destruction behind him just as last time. Sonic chuckles as he's struck by an idea. "You know, someone else once thought he was was faster than me." As Sonic runs, he pulls out a Chaos Emerald. "He taught me a thing or two. Here, let me show you. Chaos Control!" Infinite's laser slices through the flash of blue light that Sonic disappears into. A moment later, Sonic reappears, delivering a kick straight at Infinite's head. The kick connects, and Infinite's mask flies away, clattering across the metal grate floor. Infinite's apparently-fake ears remain attached to it. A wide crack has formed over the covered right eye.

Infinite collapses onto the floor before Sonic lands behind him a moment later. He chuckles again. "Who's fast now–…" No mask left to cover it, the shadowed face of a white-and-green-furred hedgehog glares up at Sonic with malice. "…Shadow!?"

Blacklight, the hedgehog behind the mask, slowly rises to his feet. "You mistake me for that _traitorous fool_!?" He lets out a high-pitched laugh that one wouldn't think possible from such an ominous figure. "Ah ha ha ha! You offend me. But still…I think I like you. What was your name again? Speedy or something?" Sonic moves as if to speak, but Blacklight puts a hand up to stop him. "Oh, wait, that's right. I don't care." He throws his hand out to the side, and the discarded mask is enveloped in Infinite's red aura. In a moment, it flies from the ground straight into Blacklight's open hand, and he pushes it back onto his face, resuming the posture of Infinite, and rising back into the air. "Because I'm going to kill you."

Preempting Infinite's attack, Sonic leaps at him for a spin attack. In an impressive backflip, Infinite kicks Sonic out of his attack and straight upwards, then flies up along with him, delivering another roundhouse kick and launching him back down, right into a broken arch, which crumbles over him on impact. Tails cries out, "Sonic!"

Clearly injured, Sonic struggles to stand back up. Infinite drifts slowly towards him. "Any last words, Speedy?"

"My name…isn't…Speedy."

"I'll be sure to write it on your grave. Now die!" Infinite flies straight at Sonic, emanating the full power of the gem at his chest.

Sonic holds the Chaos Emerald out in front of him. "Chaos Contro–" The two gems collide, and everything is enveloped in a white flash.

—–—

"In the darkest of times…the world needs a–"

"Time loop!"

"What!?"

"You thought it was a vision, but it wasn't! I'm stuck in a time loop, and Infinite remembers it too!"

"Please, slow down. Tell me what's happening."

"I've been here, I've done this…" He clutches at his head. "I'm already losing track of how many times. And every time I go to fight Infinite, I end up back here."

"Intriguing… A time loop, you say? How can you be certain?"

"'Infinity is dangerous. That which doesn't end threatens the Balance.' That's what you're thinking right now. That's what you keep telling me."

"Well, it's true. If you really are in a time loop, you must find a way to resolve it, immediately. Any imbalance, any at all, will cumulatively grow with each passage of the loop. Either the cycle must be broken, or it will resolve itself with the end of its crux-point. Your death."

"Well…maybe I should just stay here. If I don't–"

"No. Once the cycle has begun, it will find a way to continue. You must find a way to physically prevent the trigger of the loop as it would happen."

"So if I take down Infinite, it breaks the cycle."

"If this Infinite is the one responsible for trapping you in this cycle, then hypothetically, yes. But you must be careful not to let him repeat the cycle."

"Oh, I'll make sure he doesn't get the chance." Sonic places his hand on the ground in a spot surrounded by the seven Emeralds. "I didn't want to risk losing these before…" The Emeralds lift from the ground, and start to circle around him. "…but I can't be afraid to try! No holding back!" The Emeralds rotate faster and faster, glowing brilliantly, as Sonic's fur takes on a golden hue, and the gems are suddenly absorbed into his very being. Super Sonic opens his crimson red eyes. "This is where it ends."

The door to the old wooden shack bursts open, revealing an exasperated Tails on the other side. "Sonic! There's–" Tails goes silent at the sight of Super Sonic. "Uh…"

"No time for the plane, Tails." Sonic extends his hand. "Let's go."

Chaos nods. "I will remain here and–…I suppose you already know."

Tails, still somewhat in awe, takes Super Sonic's hand. "Chaos Control!"

—–—

Infinite stands waiting atop an arch. He pushes his cracked mask up as Super Sonic appears in a flash. "Welcome back, Speedy. I hope you enjoyed time's healing of your bones. Because I will enjoy breaking them again."

"This ends now, Infinite. Or whatever your real name is."

"Ah, but that is where you are wrong. Infinite does not end. Infinite stops for no one."

"You wanna prove it?"

"Please. This game is starting to bore me."

"You asked for it!" Super Sonic blasts towards Infinite at proper supersonic speeds. Yet still, Infinite is able to dodge out of the way.

Tails shouts with fear, "That's impossible! This guy is faster than _Super_ Sonic!"

Infinite rolls his visible eye. "You are _disturbingly_ predictable. Don't tell me I'm the _only_ one growing tired of this."

"I'll show you who's predictable!" Sonic lets out a shout as he flies back at Infinite. Infinite prepares to dodge once again, but at the last moment, Sonic shouts, "Chaos Control!" Inches from Infinite, he disappears, and reappears on the other side, striking him from behind and knocking him from his perch. "Chaos Control!" Before Infinite can recover, he is struck by Super Sonic again. "Chaos Control!" And again.

Wracked with rage, Infinite begins to tremble. His eye flicks flickers around disturbingly beneath his mask as his red aura flares to life.

"Chaos Control!" Sonic appears before Infinite for one more attack.

" _ENOUGH!_ " As Sonic draws inches from Infinite, he is suddenly blasted back by another overwhelming negative pulse from Infinite's gem, as the Chaos Emeralds are torn away from him.

Sonic, in his basic form, lands in a crouch back on the ground, panting. He looks up with a grimace at Infinite, orbited by the seven Emeralds. The gem at his chest seems to tremble at the center of the orbit. "Hm. Somehow, I thought getting these back would be more…satisfying. But they're almost repulsive. Oh, well. I still best hold on to them. Now…where were we?"

"The part where I kick your tail!" Sonic leaps not at Infinite, but at one of the Emeralds that orbits him.

"I disagree!" Infinite casts his hand towards Sonic, and Sonic instantly freezes in place, trapped in the air by Infinite's chaotic power. His fingers are just inches away from brushing past the Emerald. Sonic struggles and grunts in an attempt to move, but he is completely locked in place.

Tails shouts, "Oh no, Sonic!"

Infinite once again glances over at the fox. "Clearly, you haven't yet learned fear. I promised to teach it to you. A promise I intend to keep." He casts his free hand in the other direction, locking Tails just as he has Sonic.

"Tails!"

"Sonic, help me! I can't move!" Both of them struggle desperately to escape.

Blacklight's signature laugh emanates out from Infinite's mask. "Ah ha ha ha ha! Look at the fox boy squirm! Feeling scared yet, Speedy?"

Sonic stops struggling as he looks from Tails up to Infinite's eye. "Please…don't do this."

"What's this? The savior pleading with the _evil_ Infinite? You know, I think you're right. I shouldn't kill the poor boy. I think that would be an effective lesson in hate. But not in fear. I want you to _fear_. So I think I can do better." Blacklight's eye glares out from beneath the mask. "Avert your eyes, kiddies. Things are about to get violent." Infinite closes his fist to the sound of a horrifying snap.

"No!" As Sonic shouts, Infinite almost happily releases both hands, giving Sonic enough time to run and catch the limp form of Tails.

Tails looks up at Sonic meekly. "I can't…feel…" He shuts his eyes again.

Blacklight's piercing laugh once again echoes. "Don't worry, he'll live. I only broke his spine. Though, I may change my mind. Unless, of course, you're finally willing to end this game."

A thought flashes through Sonic's mind. _"He wants_ me _to end it. So he's not doing it on purpose. Which means…defeating him won't fix this."_ Sonic gently lays Tails on the ground. "Don't worry, buddy." He tightens his grip on the sparkling Emerald he managed to grab as he fell. "I'm going to make this right."

"Don't be foolish, hedgehog. Listen to the fear in your heart. It knows what's best for you."

"Heh heh." Sonic turns up to face Infinite with a chuckle. "You think you've broken me, don'tcha? That taking the cowardly route and hurting my friends is all it takes to slow me down? Well I've got some news for you, Infinite. The only thing that's infinite around here is my will to take down psychos like you!" Suddenly, in an act that surprises even Infinite himself, Sonic hurls the Chaos Emerald right at him. As the Emerald collides with Infinite's gem, the world is enveloped in white flash.

—–—

"You did _WHAT_!?"

"I'll tell you what I did. I figured out what's causing this time loop, and I saved Tails while I was at it!"

Chaos buries his face in his hands. "No, you don't understand! If it was that bad last time, it can _only_ _get worse_!"

"Unless I stop the loop before–"

"No, it doesn't work that way! The loop has already happened! The Darkness has already cumulated! It _will_ get worse! For all we know, in trying to save Miles you've only guaranteed his death!"

Sonic gasps. "No…no, I won't believe that! There has to be a way to stop it!"

Chaos closes his eyes and breathes a sigh. "I won't say that it's impossible."

"So I–"

"But…" He raises a hand to stop Sonic from speaking. "…first, I need you to tell me everything you've learned about the cause of this loop."

"Alright. So Infinite—that's the guy I'm fighting every time, or at least that's who he says he is—Infinite has this…this Phantom Ruby, I think it's the source of his power. This all started when Infinite's Ruby collided with my Chaos Emerald while I was trying to use Chaos Control. I think that made some kind of reaction that…broke time. And now, every time they touch, that reaction is replicated."

"In your experience, does this Ruby react in any other unusual way with the Emeralds?"

"Definitely."

"I see… And you're certain that this Infinite does not have any active influence over the process?"

"Absolutely."

"Well…given this information…diverting the Darkness may be possible. Miles does not have to be a component of the loop."

"Good. Then I need to–"

"No, there's something else you–"

"I can't waste any more time, I–"

The door to the old wooden shack bursts open, revealing an exasperated Tails on the other side. "Sonic! There's–"

Sonic and Chaos at once snap, "We know!" Sonic looks back to Chaos. "I'm going now, and I'm going alone."

"If you go alone now, you will _die_! I cannot allow that!"

"And I can't let the same thing happen to Tails!"

"So I'll go in his place!"

"And then the same thing will happen to _you_ , won't it?"

Chaos breathes in as if to speak back, but stops himself. "…Yes…that is a possibility."

"I'm not letting you sacrifice yourself for me."

"Protecting you is the entire reason that I came here. I must go."

Sonic sighs. "Alright. On one condition. You stay out of sight. Get me out of there if things look bad, but don't get involved."

"Very well."

Tails finally shouts, "What the heck is going on here!?"

Sonic turns back to him. "Tails…you're the only reason that I've gotten this far. But right now, I need you to stay here. You need to be ready to fight once it's time. I'm counting on you." He looks back to Chaos. "Now let's take down this Shadow wannabe." Chaos nods. Just as last time, Sonic places his hand on floor by the Emeralds. But this time, he doesn't waste any time with a dramatic transformation. "Chaos Control!"

—–—

Super Sonic once again reappears before Infinite. Infinite waves a hand through the air. "Ooh. Looks like you've come back for more." Suddenly he inhales sharply through his nose. "But what's that I smell? More Chaos energy? You know, I've really gotten a nose for the stuff. It's putrid." He turns his gaze straight to a large pile of rubble. "Someone new, instead of the fox boy? That's a shame. We were having so much fun, before you so rudely interrupted our game."

Chaos peeks an eye over the rubble. Sonic calls out to him, "It's alright, Chaos. No reason to stay hidden now."

Chaos stands up, and slowly starts walking towards Sonic. But Infinite suddenly casts a hand towards him. "I disagree!"

Chaos cries out in pain, and collapses to the ground.

"Chaos!" Sonic looks right at Infinite. "What're you doing to him!?"

"You tried to change the rules of our game." He puts extra force into his hand, and the screams of Chaos are redoubled. "I don't appreciate that." Finally he takes his hand back, and the shouts go silent. "I'm not a very patient man, Speedy. But you've certainly pushed me past my limit. The new guy stays right there, and you and I settle things now."

"Fine."

"Very well. Since you were clearly too afraid to play by the rules…that means it's time for your lesson in _pain_!" Infinite extends his arms out to his sides, and dozens, maybe hundreds of glowing red cubes materialize in the air all around him. The he crosses his arms in front of him, and the cubes are sent flying at Super Sonic.

Sonic dashes forward, weaving and bobbing through the air, careful not to touch even a single cube. Finally, he reaches close enough to strike Infinite directly. Two broken pieces of his mask clatter to the ground.

The exposed face of Blacklight glares at Sonic angrily. "You'll pay for that."

"What's the matter? Something to hide?" Sonic dashes back for another blow.

"Not at all." Infinite casts his hand at Super Sonic, still able to lock him in place. "But I liked that mask. Now…time to get rid of these _bothers_." He makes a beckoning motion with his hand, and the Emeralds are once again torn from Super Sonic as he is dropped to the ground.

Sonic makes a motion as if to reach for an Emerald before it escapes. But then he glances over at Chaos, who, still kneeling on the ground, shakes his head.

The seven Emeralds orbit around Infinite's trembling Ruby. "As much as I would like to hold on to these…I just can't stand them any longer!" He flicks his hands outwards, and the Emeralds scatter away in every direction. Chaos gives a slow nod. Infinite once again lets out Blacklight's signature laugh. "Without your little tools, you can't touch me. So I believe your game is over.

Sonic can't help but let out a little chuckle. "Game over? Not anymore. You just guaranteed your loss."

"Impossible! I've trapped you here without any ability to touch me! You've lost!" To prove the point, he fires an energy bolt, but Sonic hops out of the way.

"I never said that I won." Sonic leaps at him for a spin attack.

In a familiar pattern, Infinite kicks Sonic away, sending him flying and colliding with a crumbling arch. "Now you're just speaking nonsense. You might be crazier than I am!"

Sonic gets back to his feet from the collision. "Oh, you're crazy alright. Crazy to think that beating me here will end your troubles."

"Silence!" Infinite throws another energy bolt, one too fast for Sonic to avoid. It hits its target dead-on, and Sonic is once again sent flying back.

Sonic struggles to stand through his newest injuries. "Open up your eyes, Infinite. You're living lie. Your victory today? A hollow illusion."

"I said shut up!" Infinite once again locks Sonic in his extended grasp. This time, he flicks his arm, and flings Sonic forcefully into a wall. Before he can recover, Infinite throws him the opposite way, once again into a solid wall. Finally, he slams him to the ground with incredible force.

Sonic, facedown on the floor, trembles just to raise his head. "You can try and try…to ignore. But you can hardly swallow…your own fears and pain. That's why you can't see the truth." He collapses back onto the floor again.

Infinite begins generating another massive swarm of crimson cubes. "Say what you like. You're mine either way!" He crosses his arms to launch the swarm.

Everything goes black.

Chaos' voice shouts, "Controller! Sonic!"

 **To be continued…**

* * *

 **To any new readers out there, thanks very much for your interest. For more about the identity of Blacklight, please take a look at the episode arc starting with S0 E14, and ending with S0 E19. For more about Chaos, look to the most recent arc, starting with S0 E20.**

 **And to everyone, please send in your feedback, be it positive or negative. Something that didn't make sense? Something you want to see more of? Tell me about it! I can't get better without your help! And for behind the scenes information and other bonus content, check out the official website at sonicchaosproject{dot}wordpress{dot}com**

 **-And before I say goodbye to you, one more last Fist Bump!**


	31. Sonic Forces: After the Fight

**Null Space**

 **Time has no meaning**

A familiar-looking containment pod tumbles slowly through a void of infinite emptiness. A faint, static-filled sound emanates from it. It's a person's voice. A familiar one. "Contained within this pod is a creature of unspeakable power. And I am the fool who created him. I named him Sunlight. But he has since taken on a new name. Blacklight. Blacklight would have destroyed the world, had he not been stopped. Even so, I could not bring myself to let my creation die. I made a promise to hide him in a place where he could never be found." The pod finally turns such that its glass front can be clearly seen through. On the other side sleeps a hedgehog much like Shadow, though with fur of white and green. The faintest smile still sits on his face.

"I feared that I might never find such a place. Until I discovered the Ruby. A gemstone with properties that I couldn't even begin to understand. And contained within it, an entire pocket dimension, completely devoid of matter, which I've come to refer to as 'Null Space'. Exactly what I required. And so, I've decided to hide Blacklight in this place. Even so, I would be an even greater fool to think that no other could ever find this place. So, to whomever has rediscovered the Null Space, let this be a warning to you. Blacklight…is the least of your worries. This Ruby…it is evil. It will rain destruction upon your world, and it will take advantage of you in order to do it. If you have found the Ruby, you must get rid of it, get it as far away from your world as possible. If you do not, the consequences shall be dire." The message cuts to static, then starts to repeat on an infinite loop. "Contained within this pod…"

Far off in the distance, a strange distortion appears in the blackness of the void. The distortion begins to grow, into a swirling vortex of a pinkish color. All around, the blackness begins to change. Floor and sky, once nonexistent, now almost indistinguishable from each other, flows with morphing clouds of a similar pinkish hue to the vortex, constantly fluctuating, and providing a fair amount of ominous light. Suddenly, out of the vortex rises a violet colored gemstone, almost seeming to pull behind it a short hedgehog with sky-blue fur, orbited by seven Chaos Emeralds, turning uncontrollably through the air. A few moments later, a large mechanical hand reaches out of the vortex, grasping for the gemstone. The hand is followed by the rest of the regal egg-shaped robot, with legs replaced by circling tendrils, and a crown insignia marked on its chest. The Heavy King, in its most powerful form, drifts backwards from the vortex, waving its arms as if in challenge to the younger Sonic the Hedgehog, inserting the gemstone into a slot on its tall crown. Suddenly, the robot is struck by another machine, a hastily-made, two-armed red mech piloted by a poorly-dressed Doctor Eggman. The two machines push against each other for several moments, until the Doctor's machine disappears in a flash of crimson light. Heavy King returns its attention to Sonic. In defiance and determination, Sonic glares back as the Emeralds orbit him tighter and faster, until he finally absorbs them in a flash of golden light. Super Sonic flashes towards his opponent.

Far off in another direction, a different scene appears. Two animoid figures are thrown out of a much darker vortex, onto a platform of purplish cubes in the Null Space. The older Sonic the Hedgehog of ocean-blue fur stands, and after a moment of looking around, states resolutely, "This isn't where we were meant to end up." His companion, a red-furred Wolf garbed in black-rimmed glasses and dark green gloves and boots, and armed with a red Burst Wispon, stands and offers Sonic his hand. Sonic nods in response. "Let's head back. Everyone's waiting for us!" The two jump up and clap hands, becoming cloaked in a bright blue aura as a faint point of bright light appears in the blackness far beyond them. Suddenly, they take off at an incredible speed, the cubes beneath them continually rearranging to keep them always in the center as they run. The faster they go, the brighter the light in front of them grows.

In yet another direction, duplicates of the very same two run along a similar shifting platform of cubes, joined by a duplicate of the younger, lighter Sonic as well, all three of them charging towards a strange, white, almost organic-looking tentacled robot. The older Sonic leaps into the air. "There's nothing the three of us can't achieve together!" The other two leap next to him. "Victory is ours for the taking!" In an even greater burst of color and speed than with just two, the three dash towards the robot at full force.

And in one last direction, a different event seems to be unfolding. A single point of golden light faces down a silhouetted monster of terrifying proportions, with an ominous violet glow at its top.

Somehow, all of these events seem to unfold at once around the slowly drifting pod, none ever aware of the presence of any other.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Sonic Forces Special Episode 2**

 **After the Fight**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **Eggman Empire Fortress - DEATH EGG ROBOT**

 **Two years ago - The events of Sonic Forces**

"Victory is our for the taking!" The three heroes burst towards the tentacled machine, drilling through the air with their combined power, finally impacting the machine's core, and blasting right through. The robot becomes wracked with explosions as the illusionary space around them begins to crumble away, revealing normal space behind. As the robot sustains greater and greater damage, massive beams of shining violet light are thrown out from its core, growing brighter and brighter, until the entire machine is encompassed by the light of the shattered Phantom Ruby inside.

A war wages on the rocky battlefield outside. The Resistance of heroes, Knuckles, Silver, Amy, the Chaotix, Shadow, Rouge and Omega, backed by an army of Wispon-wielding animoids, fight in chaos against a far larger army of Phantom Replicas, Shadow, Chaos 0, Metal Sonic, Zavok, and even a few scattered Replicas of Infinite. Knuckles faces a Zavok Replica in a duel of strength. But as he leaps in for a solid punch, the fake creature suddenly dissolves into a mess of glitchy particles, and Knuckles passes right through him, rolling to avoid landing on his head. He looks back at the rest of the battle, as one by one, each and every Replica dissolves in the same way. The soldiers look around in confusion, ready for the next attack. But Knuckles stands tall, raising a fist in celebration. "Alright! We won!"

Silence falls over the battlefield. Then a quiet cheer begins, quickly spreading through the entire army. The Chaotix give especially emphatic cheers, and give a congratulatory nod to Knuckles. Rouge gives a casual shrug. "Piece of cake." With a slight smirk, Shadow nods in agreement.

Silver floats up with a cheer. "Yeah!"

Amy gives him a thumbs-up. "We did it!"

All around the battlefield, soldiers help each other to their feet, congratulate each other, and cheer even louder.

Knuckles nods in satisfaction at the sight of everyone celebrating together. "I knew we could do it." He turns around to look out past the Imperial Tower, where the last glow from the Ruby can still be seen fading away. "I knew _they_ could do it."

"No…it isn't over yet…" The heroes all turn with a start to the source of the weak voice. A black and white furred Jackal seems barely able to claw his way across the ground, keeping his eyes locked firmly on the ground. He wears no mask.

Sonic and his Wolf partner run in from the direction of the tower, skidding to a halt at the sight of the Jackal. Sonic clenches a fist as he glares down at the pitiful figure with rage. "Infinite." A moment later, Tails flies in carrying the younger Classic Sonic, and lets him on the ground next to them.

Vector asks with some confusion, " _That's_ him? The guy that took you down so hard?"

Shadow scoffs, "You couldn't even finish him off? Pathetic."

Knuckles steps forward, "If you don't mind, I'd love to give this guy a smack for you."

Charmy cheers, "Yeah, give him a smack!" Espio shushes him.

Silver scratches his chin as he watches the Jackal attempt to crawl closer. "Something's not right…"

The Wolf looks around at his comrades with what might be described as disgust. Then he runs for the Jackal, shaking his head and sighing with disappointment.

Tails reaches after him. "Hold on, he might still be–"

As the Wolf helps the Jackal to his feet, his face is revealed for the first time. Though his left eye is yellow as was always seen beneath the mask of Infinite, his right is a soft, deep blue, with a small but long scar running through it. "You have to help… The Ruby…" He seems barely on the edge of consciousness. His features, perhaps more like theirs than most of them ever thought to imagine, gives them all pause. Except for the Wolf, who sits him down on a flat rock closeby, looking him in the eyes the entire time.

Now sitting down, the Jackal seems to collect his senses a bit better, as everyone stares in confusion. "There isn't much time. Everything will be destroyed."

Sonic moves his way forward until he stands directly over the Jackal. "Alright, Infinite. You have ten seconds to explain why I shouldn't let Knuckles have at you."

"Don't…don't call me that."

"Nine."

"I'm just trying to–"

"Eight."

"The Phantom Ruby wasn't destroyed!"

The Wolf gasps. Sonic objects, "Of course it was destroyed, we just blasted right through it! The illusions all went away!"

"Didn't you listen to a word the Doctor said!? That Ruby, Infinite's Ruby, was just a prototype! The final prototype, but a fake nonetheless. But the real Ruby, the original, is still out there."

Knuckles steps up beside Sonic. "Forgive us if we're skeptical. You are single handedly responsible for almost everything that's happened these last six months. People have died! And it's your fault! Why should we believe a word that you say?"

"That…that wasn't…" He clutches at his forehead as he shakes his head. "Look, I only came here to warn you. If you want to sit back, and watch your world burn…" He slowly looks up at them, wearing a malicious smirk on his face, and clutching a hand in front of his scarred blue eye. "…don't let me stand in your way."

Sonic sighs. "Tell us everything you know."

"That's what I thought." He closes his eyes. "The Ruby…has always been filled with…malice. An eternity of it. But that's all it ever was. Pure, seething emotion. Until the Doctor started making prototypes. They were all…connected, somehow. And each new prototype added to the collective intelligence. It became conscious."

Sonic interrupts with a look over to his fox friend. "Tails, does this check out?"

"I'm no expert, but I can confirm that the Ruby always did have some kind of outside connection. I assumed it was just to its power source. But this would explain it too."

Sonic nods. "Alright. Go on."

The Jackal closes his eyes again. "The Ruby became conscious by connecting with the prototypes. So when we started destroying the prototypes…it got even angrier. But it couldn't control the prototypes, not directly. So in its newfound intelligence, it waited. It plotted. As you know, the prototypes required an immense source of artificially-produced energy. But the source of the real Ruby's power…is desire itself. And for six months, that thing used the prototype as a conduit to leech that power away from me. Six months, every hour of every day, I was feeding that thing raw power. The power it needed to strike back."

"So where is it now?"

"When the Doctor realized that the original Ruby no longer served his will, he foolishly cast it away without a second thought, seeing no further use for it. In his Ruby delusions, all he saw was that the prototypes were useful, and the original was not."

"That doesn't answer the question. Where is it?"

"I…don't know, precisely. But in the last moments before the prototype was taken away from me, I sensed that it was ready. Ready for its revenge. It's coming for me."

Sonic rolls his eyes. " _There's_ the reason I was looking for. You only came to us so you could save your own skin."

"Don't act so superior about it. After all…" The Jackal raises a clawed finger, and taps it square at the center of the Wolf's chest. "…it's coming for _you_ next." He looks over to Sonic. "And judging by what you just 'accomplished', I'd imagine you're on the list as well." He glances over to Classic Sonic. "Both versions of you. And that, of course, is only the beginning. It will rain destruction upon this entire world."

Knuckles raises an eyebrow. "Last I checked, you _wanted_ to see the world burn. What does your life matter in that grand scheme?"

"Infinite may have been willing, even happy to give his own life to his design fulfilled. Is it such a surprise to you that _I_ might put more value on my own life than that? The Ruby illusions…do things to one's mind. Call out one's darkest emotions." He looks up to the Wolf. "Surely, even you realized that, as you scaled the tower to stop the sun? You heard it beckoning to you, as if whispering thoughts into your ear. Telling you to abandon your reason. To hit hard. To show no mercy." The Wolf thinks back for a moment. Then he gives a brief nod in affirmation. "Even with the purest of intentions, such emotions can be drawn out. And I doubt you would call my intentions 'pure'. Now, for the first time six months…my head is finally clear again."

Sonic nods. "I hate to say it, but I believe you. So how much time do you think we have?"

The Jackal lets out a laugh that still somehow manages to sound menacing in his weakness. "I believe your time…" He points to a point in space above and behind them, where a black vortex opens from nowhere. "…is up."

To the sound of a familiar, slow pulsating noise, a large violet gemstone emerges from the vortex. Classic Sonic clenches a fist, immediately recognizing the shape.

Sonic springs into action immediately. "I'll shatter that thing right now!"

Tails looks up from the readings on his Handheld. "Sonic, wait, there's some kind of–…" Sonic hits hard against a wall of translucent glowing cubes that had been invisible a moment ago. "…barrier." The wall fades away as quickly as it appeared.

Sonic lands in a crouch, and immediately looks back at the Jackal. "How do we get past the barrier?"

The Jackal laughs. "The wall is only there to make sure you watch patiently." On the other side of the invisible barrier, beneath the floating ruby, five cyclones of the crimson cubes begin to circle. "It's putting on a show for you." The cubes cycle tighter and tighter, until, at their base, they begin to form together, constructing shapes from the bottom up.

The first shape morphs into a Replica of Shadow the Hedgehog. The real Shadow glares at it with rage. But it only stares blankly past him. The second forms into another Replica, one of Chaos 0, met by a look of sorrow from Knuckles. Omega stares without recognizable emotion at the third shape, a Metal Sonic Replica. Tails tenses up with caution at the sight of the fourth, Zavok. And in the position of the fifth, something unrecognizable to most appears. Now wearing a billowing red cloak, and wielding a tall staff in one hand, the Heavy King stands tall alongside the other Replicas. Sonic glances over at his Classic counterpart for a moment, seeing all he needs to know from from the look in his eyes.

The Jackal chuckles again. "How amusing. It must really hate…" Another, smaller cyclone of cubes forms above the Ruby, quickly forming into the empty mask of Infinite. He finishes with a growl, "…me." The mask begins to lower over the Ruby as if it were a person's head. The moment the Ruby is covered completely, it releases a massive, overwhelming wave of negative crimson energy. As this wave contacts the Replicas, they begin to transform. The fake Shadow's feet lift from the ground as his fur takes on a golden glow, transforming into Super Shadow. In a rainbow colored flash of light, the Chaos creature disappears, as a far more massive Perfect Chaos rises as if from a spring in the ground behind where it once stood. Metal Sonic explodes into pieces, only to come back together almost as quickly, along with thousands of other mechanical pieces generated almost instantaneously by the Ruby, assembling piece by piece at an almost untraceable speed. Spikes jut out as components connect together, all to form the body of the dragonoid Metal Overlord. Zavok claws into the ground as his body begins to swell in a process that looks immensely painful. The result is a full-powered Giant Zavok, with embers flying from his mouth as he roars. The Heavy King rises from the ground as its legs, in a flash of glitched particles, morph into a pair of circling tendrils composed of what might be mistaken for strings of small Phantom Ruby prototypes, as the robot grows considerably larger. Its arms and other features change similarly, until matches its Phantom King form seen in Null Space.

Amy looks across the empowered Replicas, horror-struck. "This looks bad…"

The masked Ruby releases another pulse of energy. As this wave washes over the Replicas, they begin to lose their forms once more, dissolving back into cubes, which begin to swarm around the Ruby in a chaotic amalgam. Finally, with one last pulse, everything forms together into a single, monstrous form. This new creature is a hideous combination of all of the empowered Replicas. It bears four crimson arms of Zavok, mechanical tail and wings of Metal Overlord, tentacled liquid body of Perfect Chaos, and gold and red spikes of Super Shadow, emerging from the back of an organic, silver-scaled dragon's head, recognizable with the same shape and eyes as Infinite's mask. Atop the creature's head sits Heavy King's tall pointed crown, with the Phantom Ruby secured to its top.

Silver shakes his head. "That looks even worse…"

The Phantom Nightmare roars in challenge, as it begins to charge an intense crimson light in its jagged mouth.

Knuckles shouts, "Look out, it's attacking!"

The heroes all scatter, avoiding the creature's massive laser attack, aimed directly at the Jackal. He stares down the blindingly bright beam without flinching. He even gives a slight chuckle at the inevitable. But at the last moment, the Wolf grabs hold of his arm and fires his grappling hook, rapidly pulling them both up and away from danger, as the laser obliterates the rocks around where he had been standing.

Sonic looks out at the Resistance army, scattering and screaming in confusion. He declares in a shout, "Come on, everyone! Now's not the time to give in to your fear! We need to work together to take this thing down! Give it everything you've got!" After a momentary murmur, the army trains their weapons on the creature, and open fire. The creature recoils under the hailstorm of cyan laser fire, opening the opportunity for the heroes to attack. Silver throws out rapid-fire psychic waves, Amy swings her hammer, Knuckles punches, Omega launches an arsenal full of weapons at once, Shadow warps from place to place to place landing kicks wherever he can. But even with them and everyone else working together, none of it seems to have much effect on the massive creature.

Consumed with rage, the Phantom Nightmare creates a massive negative energy pulse with a roar, which deflects laser bolts and knocks all of the heroes away.

Vector wipes off the corner of his mouth. "This thing's tough. I don't know if we can handle it." The Phantom Nightmare holds out one of Zavok's hands, and begins charging a massive fireball. But the fire dissipates as a grappling hook wire wraps around the wrist, and yanks the hand away.

Knuckles cheers, "Yeah! The Rookie's got this!"

The Wolf swings around the massive creature, wrapping it tighter and tighter with the wire. Focused entirely on him, the creature wildly turns and fires off more laser attacks, continuing to miss the mark.

Sonic looks down at his Classic counterpart. "Get ready. We're gonna take this thing down." As the Wolf swings around again, he comes down enough to grab the hands of both Sonics, pulling them up, and then throwing them high with the full force of the swing. The creature bound tight, he unhooks the wire and gives them the thumbs up. The Sonics curl into balls for a spin attack right at the crown that holds the Ruby.

With relatively little effort, the Phantom Nightmare snaps free from the wire, and prepares to claw at the blue streaks headed for it.

Sonic uncurls with a start, flailing through the air. "W-whoa!"

Just before the creature strikes them, it suddenly freezes in place, completely enveloped by an aqua-colored aura. The Sonics stumble back to the ground, and the older one looks over to the source of the aura. "Silver?"

Silver stands with both hands directed at the creature, clenching his eyes and putting immense effort into keeping the creature still. "I can hold it here, but not for very long. If you have a backup plan, Sonic, now's the time!"

Sonic looks the other way, to the Jackal, who stares up at the creature's crown. Sonic groans. "Why are you just standing there!? At least help us out! That thing has to have some kind of weakness, right?"

The Jackal looks back at him with feigned surprise. "Weakness? And here I thought you could defeat it through the bonds of _friendship_."

"Now's not the time, just tell me anything!"

"There is…one thing." He looks over at Classic Sonic. "Something the small one taught the Ruby itself to fear."

Classic Sonic nods slowly, pulling out a glittering white gemstone. Tails walks up behind him. "We found that out in the Mystic Forest looking for you."

Sonic nods as well. "Of course. The Chaos Emeralds. But what can we do with just one?"

Vector steps forward. "Make that two." He produces the purple Emerald. "We were hoping to sell this off for a little extra dough once this whole war was over. But it sounds like you need it more than we do."

Knuckles pulls out a yellow one. "Got your third right here. Been holding on to it for good luck since the very beginning of this war."

Silver, keeping the creature held with one hand, uses the other to psychically lift the blue and cyan Emeralds, and pushes them off to Sonic. "I was keeping these for when I need them…but they'll do fine for you."

Rouge, somewhat reluctantly, pulls out the green. "Managed to swipe this beauty off the Death Egg. I guess it's all yours."

Sonic looks over the Emeralds, making a quick recount. "That's only six. Where's the seventh!?"

Rouge glances over at Shadow, then jabs an elbow into his ribs. "You've been using Chaos Control, we all know you have it."

"Ungh. Fine." Shadow holds out the remaining red Emerald.

The Emeralds lift away from the hands of those who still hold them, entering in orbit around the two Sonics. Sonic looks over to his younger self. "You ready to do this, partner?" Classic Sonic nods back confidently. The Emeralds begin to orbit tighter and faster. Sonic holds out a closed fist. "Then let's show this thing what we can do!" Classic Sonic happily returns the fist bump, as both are encompassed by a golden flash of light.

From a fair distance away, the Wolf stares oddly at the transformed Super hedgehogs.

The Sonics turn around with a start to the sound of the loud roar coming from behind them. The Phantom Nightmare moves again, no longer held by the aqua aura. Silver lies collapsed on the floor. "Silver!"

Knuckles runs in to help him. "I've got him, you just take care of this thing!"

Enraged by a new target, the creature prepares to strike at Knuckles and Silver. Super Sonic once again glances at Classic Sonic. "Let's take this thing where it can't hurt anyone!" The golden hedgehogs take off at incredible speeds, blasting into the creature, interrupting its attack, and forcing it off of the ground, and into the same vortex that the Phantom Ruby came out of.

The Wolf reaches out as if preparing to call out to them. But he remains silent.

—–—

 **PHANTOM NIGHTMARE**

Floating close enough together to be mistaken for a single point of golden light from far enough away, the Super Sonics face down the Phantom Nightmare as a blazing red aura flares to life around it. Tails' static-filled voice chimes in on the communicator, "Guys, can you hear me? I have some bad news. I think that thing is stronger in its own Null Space."

Amy objects, "No need to worry about that now. With all of us cheering you on, I know you can do it!"

Knuckles adds, "The way you inspired all those people out there, you've got a whole army cheering you on. I'm proud of you. Just try not to let us down."

Espio continues, "It's all up to you now. Show this thing once and for all that we do not give in to fear."

Rouge, with a hint of sarcasm, cheers, "You've got this, Sonic!"

Shadow, the target of Rogue's joke, groans.

Silver, sounding quite weak, concludes, "Not just for us…not just for the world. For everything…that comes after."

The pair of hedgehogs fly at their target through the dark void of Null Space. As Sonic soars, he answers back, "You guys worry too much. Super Sonic style, the two of us are unbeatable. Right, buddy?" Classic Sonic gives no answer. The Phantom Nightmare roars in challenge once again, and immediately fires a crisscross of lasers from each of its four hands. The hedgehogs separate as Sonic weaves and dives to keep out of harm, while Classic Sonic merely ducks underneath, maintaining his straight course. As the two draw closer, the Nightmare ends the lasers and roars again, as several dozen small, electrified orbs form in orbit around it. One at a time, these orbs launch away from their orbits at the hedgehogs, gaining much larger negative auras as they do. Sonic resumes his aerial maneuvers, skillfully dodging one orb after another, but overwhelmed by the number of them, one finally lands a hit, knocking him back and forcing out a cry of pain. "Argh! What the heck!? That hurt! That thing can hurt Super Sonic!" After a moment, speeding back on course, he adds, "I just referred to myself in the third person, didn't I?"

Tails responds, "We're dealing with power that we still don't understand. You'll have to be more careful. And yes. Yes you did."

—–—

Knuckles carefully sits Silver down on a rock. "Are you alright?"

After a moment to collects his wits, he answers slowly, "I…I'll live. How…is Sonic doing?"

"They're having a rough time. But they'll pull through."

Silver tries to push himself back to his feet. "I should be helping them."

Knuckles forces him back down. "You should be resting. You've done enough."

Silver closes his eyes and clutches at his head. He looks back up after a few moments as he realizes something. Shadow stands not far away, arms crossed, staring out at the cloudy horizon. Silver calls out to him, "What about you?" Shadow glances back at him to listen. "Shouldn't you be out there with them?"

Shadow rolls his eyes. "And get between the narcissist and his reflection? Tch."

"The…what?"

"Don't you get it? Sonic is living his egocentric fantasy out there. Just him and himself, solving everyone's problems, because that's just how great he thinks he is."

Silver scratches his head. "So you're saying that he…deserves to be happy…while he's saving the world?"

"No. I'm saying he's a fool, and he doesn't deserve anyone's help." He sighs and shakes his head. "This war's already over, I don't even know what I'm doing here anymore." He's already started walking off.

Amy calls after him, "Shadow, wait! Don't leave!" He ignores her.

Tails looks over to Rouge. "Is he alright? He seems…even grumpier than usual."

She shakes her head slightly. "I'm worried…that he might be losing sight of what's important to him. I'll go talk to him."

Rouge runs to catch up with Shadow. He glances back at her as he walks. "Coming with me?"

"Not yet, I'm not."

He stops with a sigh. "We should be getting back to GUN. This war nearly destroyed them. They'll need us."

"Maybe they will. But right now, there are other people who need us more."

"And who would that be?"

"Everyone. The entire world, Shadow."

"The war is over."

"Which is exactly why they need us now. The war tore this planet apart. The world needs to know that there are heroes out there who will do everything they can to stop something like this from happening again. And like it or not, you're one of those heroes, Shadow."

"A hero? In case you forgot, my face was one of the symbols of the Eggman Empire. It's going to be a long time before this world can trust me again."

"That wasn't you! But you'll have a pretty hard time proving that if you aren't around to tell them _now_!"

Shadow rolls his eyes and resumes his walk.

"Look, I don't know what kind of problem you have with _people_ right now, but you're not going to solve anything by hiding away from it."

Shadow keeps walking. "I'm not hiding."

"Fine then. Run on back to GUN, if you want to return a complete failure."

Shadow stops again. "What?"

"Our mission, remember? The whole reason we got caught up in this crazy war. The Commander wanted us to destroy Eggman's secret new weapon. Which, _in case you forgot_ , Sonic is still dealing with. How's it going to look on you if, six months later, you head back before the job is even done? At least stick around long enough to see it through."

"…Fine."

Quite some distance away now, the Wolf still stares up at the portal into Null Space. "It really makes you angry, doesn't it?" He looks back with a gasp at the Jackal, who speaks as he approaches from behind. The Jackal stops and looks up to the portal just as the Wolf does. "All your life, you've looked up to heroes like him. And for a single fleeting moment, you thought that you had become his partner…his equal, even. But the moment you were no longer of use to him, he cast you aside, in favor of…himself. Because no matter how hard you work, no matter how much of a ' _hero_ ' you become, you will never have what this world granted him at birth. You'll never become like him. You can try all you want, but the world will never allow it."

The Wolf gives him a look of surprise and curiosity.

"Of course I understand. Why do you think I ever picked up that Ruby in the first place?" He looks back up to the portal. "It was my one chance…to have the power that the world had denied me time and time again. The power to bring change. To escape my endless days of useless toiling."

The Wolf looks down for a while with a look of deep thought. But then he looks back up to the Jackal with a smile.

"I was wrong about you, kid. You and I…are much alike."

The two both look back up to the portal, sharing a similar look of longing. But the Jackal's is marked by the slightest smirk.

—–—

Super Sonic blasts towards the Phantom Nightmare's crown, Classic Sonic right back on his tail. Sonic speeds ahead, preparing to strike right at the Ruby. Instead, he bounces hard off of another wall of cubes. He looks down to Classic Sonic, who meets with similar results trying to strike at the creature's center. "Keep trying, this thing has to have a weak point somewhere!" The two golden hedgehogs begin to swarm around the Nightmare, attempting to strike at as many different points as they can, but failing every time. It seems to be completely encompassed by the box-shaped barrier. Further enraged, the creature swats them both away in one blow, launching them far back.

Sonic reaches for his communicator. "We're not getting anywhere here, this thing's untouchable!"

Knuckles shouts back, "Don't give up so easily! Remember the Metal Overlord?"

Tails adds, "Of course! Regular attacks didn't work back then either!"

Knuckles agrees. "But you know what did?"

Sonic nods. "Of course. A team attack!" He turns to Classic Sonic, offering his hand. "You ready to show this thing what we can _really_ do?" The two happily clap hands, becoming cloaked in an intensely radiant golden aura. Then they take off together at blinding speeds. "Super Boost!"

The Phantom Nightmare roars, rapidly throwing massive fireballs from all of its hands. But the combined strength of the Super-powered hedgehogs is able to blast right through all attacks. Finally, they collide with the barrier, forcing against it with their full power for several moments. "Keep pushing through! We can do this!" The barrier shatters into a thousand cubes as they blast through, and strike right between the Nightmare's eyes. The massive creature tumbles backwards from the force of the blow, but quickly recovers.

Sonic nods down to Classic Sonic. "I'll bet we can wrap this up in one more go! Together, this thing's got nothing on us!" They prepare to clap hands again.

More enraged than ever, the Phantom Nightmare lets out the loudest roar yet, accompanied by an intense negative energy pulse from the Ruby.

"Super…" Just before their hands touch, the pulse hits them, knocking them tumbling away. "Wh-whoa, whoa!" The creature roars again, creating second pulse. But this one seems to wash over them harmlessly. Until Sonic's eyes begin to go blank.

Tails' voice calls in, "Sonic, can you hear me? What's going on? Sonic? Sonic!? _Sonic!_ "

—–—

"Guys, something's wrong! Sonic isn't responding!"

Knuckles objects, "No way! They had this all wrapped up, they can't have lost now!"

Silver shakes his head slowly. "It can't be…"

A loud grunt sounds behind Tails. He turns to look at the Wolf, still standing beside the Jackal. Tails looks at them with confusion. "What is it, what do you need?"

The Jackal answers for him, "Isn't it obvious? He wants you to fly him to the Null Space portal."

"What!?"

Vector shouts, "Are you crazy, kid!? You won't last ten seconds against that thing!"

Knuckles steps up to him. "As your Commander, I can't let you go through with this. It's way too dangerous!"

The Jackal shakes his head. "Don't any of you understand? He's perfectly aware of the danger. He doesn't care. He's grown tired of running away from danger. He's willing to do whatever it takes."

Everyone goes silent for a long time at the meaning of the words. Finally Knuckles lowers his head. "Okay…I won't stop you."

Tails interrupts, "Hold on!" He pulls out something, and presents it to the Wolf. It appears to be a Wispon, but of a design not seen before. In color, it is white with just the slightest bluish tint, with a single violet spot printed towards the back. As if to indicate that it's special, a curly metallic piece sticks out from the top. "This is a prototype Colorless Wispon I've been working on. It's meant to be able to work with any kind of Wisp. You should take it, it might help you."

The Wolf takes the new weapon, replaces his old one, and takes a moment to get a feel for the weight and shape of it.

Suddenly, Vector shouts, "What the heck is _that_!?" He points high up into the sky, to an enormous cluster of constantly shifting points of light floating beneath the dim cloud cover.

Espio gasps. "Could it be…some sort of attack!?"

A loud squeaking noise comes out of the cluster as it begins to descend towards them rapidly.

Tails shakes his head. "It's not an attack…those are friends!" As the cluster draws closer, individual colors can be made out amongst the points of light, colors of an incredible variety, red, green, blue, orange, pink, magenta, and plenty of others. But a majority of them are white. "They're Wisps! Hundreds of them!"

The cluster of Wisps stop a short distance above the group, swarming around and squeaking happily. One particular Red Burst Wisp leaves the group, floating right up to the Wolf. It bounces around and squeaks especially excitedly to him, flailing its tentacle-like arms about as it jabbers on.

Amy looks to Tails. "Tails, what's he saying?"

Tails taps some commands into his Handheld to get the translator working. "Let's see here…he says… 'You saved us all from Baldy Nosehair…'" He stops to chuckle for a moment. "…'so now, we want to help you too.' Of course!" He looks to the Wolf. "These are all the Wisps you and Sonic freed during the war! They sensed that he was in trouble, so they want to help you save him!"

Nodding in affirmation, the Wisp happily soars into the Wolf's new Wispon. The rest of the cluster give a collective squeak, and begin streaming in after the first Wisp. The Wolf gasps in surprise as one after another soars into the same device in his hand, and it quickly becomes covered in a rainbow-colored aura.

Tails yells, "Hold on, it wasn't meant to hold that much–…" He trails off as the aura begins to spread, up the Wolf's arm and through the rest of his body. The radiant aura blows his fur wildly, but doesn't change its color. "Under the right circumstances…the Hyper-go-on energy that Wisps produce can be just as powerful as the Chaos Emeralds. You and Sonic should have no problem taking that thing down!"

The last of the Wisps stream in, and the force of it causes him to reel back a Wolf looks up and down his arms in wonder.

"Well, what are you waiting for? You don't need me anymore!"

The Wolf nods with a slight chuckle. Then he crouches down, and spreads his arms wide.

"Eagle!"

He leaps up into the air, and continues to soar all the way to the portal, calling upon the power of the Crimson Eagle Wisp.

Tails looks up at him happily as he flies through. "Amazing…he found all the power he needed, by saving lives and making friends."

Knuckles nods in agreement. "We could all learn a thing or two from that kid."

Even the Jackal stares up with surprise. "He really is something, isn't he?"

—–—

 **? ? ?**

 _The setting sun casts a brilliant orange gleam over the ocean, and out onto the grassy plain beyond. Sonic the Hedgehog runs by in a blue streak. There are no clouds in the blue and orange sky. There are no walls, no obstacles, no enemies, no allies. Just Sonic, sprinting through the open air as fast as his feet will carry him. His eyes are closed, letting the wind rush past his face. The only sound is that of his own rapid footsteps, crunching against the grass. No matter how far he runs, the landscape never changes. The sun never sets. A voice, distorted beyond any recognition, yet still soft-sounding, speaks slowly, "Your desire…is strong. You are…tired. Tired of fighting. Six months, you were trapped. Now all you want…is to be as far from it all as you can get. You don't have to fight anymore. You won't have to fight ever again…" Sonic doesn't react directly to the words, continuing to run along. But somehow, he seems to be comforted…_

And yet, in reality, Super Sonic stares blankly off into Null Space, though still wearing the same expression of comfort on his face. From the watery Perfect Chaos body of the Phantom Nightmare, two tendrils reach for Sonic and Classic Sonic beside him, who stares off with the same blank eyes. As the tendril reaches Classic Sonic's foot, it begins to wrap slowly up and around him, binding him tightly. But he doesn't seem to notice, as a smile comes to his face…

 _A twinkling light soars away from the Little Planet and through the late-dusk sky, landing on a nearby cliffside between two others. A younger Tails happily embraces Classic Sonic at his return. Across from him, Knuckles gives a satisfied nod. Together, the three of them look out to the chained planetoid, as its chains begin to shatter, and it takes on an intense violet glow. As they watch on in wonder, the Virtual copy of the Little Planet begins to fade away in the same glitchy manner as the Replicas. "This is not your fight. It never was. All you want…is to return home, where you belong. To leave all of this Ruby mania behind you. Soon, you will be_ exactly _where you belong…"_

The tendrils wrap around their necks. The across their mouths. _"Soon, all of your troubles will be over."_

"Laser!"

In an instant, the tendrils are sliced apart by a cyan streak, and the Wolf emerges on the other side. No longer connected to a source, the watery wrappings around the hedgehogs simply drip away.

"Drill!"

Directing his Wispon at the Nightmare, the Wolf spirals towards it, headed by a pointed energy aura.

"Rocket!"

Still drilling, the Wolf blasts forwards far faster than before, with speeds perhaps even matching Super Sonic. Even further angered by this interruption, the Phantom Nightmare roars again, and begins to charge six separate attacks at once. In each of its hands, fireballs of Zavok, Chaos Spears of Shadow, blue crystal attack of Metal Overlord, and green energy bullets of Perfect Chaos. Phantom King's energy spheres form around it. And in its mouth, Infinite's crimson laser. It unleashes the barrage of attacks all at once.

"Spikes!"

The Wolf becomes cloaked by a pink, spiked shell, rotating rapidly as he flies at the Nightmare. The impenetrable shell deflects every attack without being slowed in the slightest, fading away just as the Wolf rockets into his target. The Nightmare once again tumbles back from the force of the attack. The moment it recovers, it lets loose another negative pulse with a roar, which washes over the Wolf just as it did the hedgehogs.

The Wolf tries to straighten his arm, to point the Wispon at the creature, but he can't seem to get it to move. His eyes begin to glaze over.

 _"I remember you…. You, with desire unlike any other. Desire to save your home against all odds. And now, still just as strong. Desire to…to…"_ The strange voice begins to falter as, inch by inch, the Wolf's hand begins to move. _"…to fight…alongside your friends. To…save their lives. To…point the weapon in your hand…and to fire."_

"Burst!"

He fires an unbelievably large inferno from the Wispon, enough to completely encompass the massive creature.

The Nightmare distracted, the Sonics begin to shake themselves out of their delusions, just as the Wolf himself fully regains control. For a moment the two glance at each other, before turning their attention to the source of the massive fireball. Sonic shouts happily, "Buddy! You made it!"

The Wolf turns back to him with a smile and a thumbs-up. But while he looks away, a hand reaches out from the flames, and swats him away.

The Sonics catch the Wolf before he flies too far. After a moment to regain his balance he nods to them in thanks. Then they all turn to the creature. Sonic points out at it dramatically. "You've made a big mistake, _pal_. You messed with _my friends_." He indicates the two on either side of him. "So we're gonna show you what it means to put our trust in each other, to stand united no matter what!" He puts his fist out between the other two. "Right, guys?" They meet his fist with their own in a three-way fist bump. The Wolf's aura washes over the other two. Together, they dash towards the Nightmare, radiating the rainbow aura around them. "With the three of us together at max power, nothing can stand in our way! And this thing's just a hunk of rock with a bad attitude! Super…Triple…Boost!" A single, pointed aura encompassing them all, they blast off with blinding speed, drilling towards the Nightmare.

The Phantom Nightmare emits a continuous roar, unleashing wave after wave of negative energy pulses. But each pulse fails to distort the full spectrum of colors in the boosting projectile. They impact a newly-erected barrier. They blast through it almost instantly, only to impact another. It shatters just as quickly, giving way to still one more. No barriers left, the Nightmare protects itself with its arms. Each arm vanishes like Replicas after only a moment of contact. No means of protection left, the three blast straight through the creature's head. It lets out a pain-filled shriek, as its entire body glitches away into nothing, leaving only a dulled Ruby behind.

—–—

Everyone watches the portal on total silence. Suddenly, it starts to pulsate wildly. The two hedgehogs and a Wolf drop out and onto the ground. Sonic holds up the Phantom Ruby triumphantly. A cheer roars across the crowd. The Wolf gasps as all of the Wisps burst out of his Wispon, cheering just as fervently in their own squeaky language. Even the Jackal gives a satisfied smile. The weapon, emptied, drops out of the Wolf's hand, flinging sparks. Tails sighs, "Aww, that was my only prototype!" In the sky, the dim clouds are beginning to clear, revealing patches of clear blue on the other side.

A Burst Wisp, the same from before, approaches the Wolf from its crowd, and dances around him gleefully. He laughs at the sheer joy on the alien's face. Then he looks over to Tails questioningly. Tails digs through the data on the translator for him. "He's not really saying anything. He's just…happy. I think he wants to stay with you." The Wisp squeaks and flips around in affirmation of the suggestion. The Wolf laughs again, and reaches out to scratch the alien's chin.

Rouge looks over to Shadow. "So, gonna leave now?"

Shadow looks across the happy faces three celebrating heroes, and everyone else in the crowd. "Maybe I'll…stay with the Resistance a while longer."

Rouge nods with a smirk. "I knew you'd come around."

As the cheering finally begins to die down, Sonic looks to the dull violet gem in his hands. "Welp…time to get rid of this pain-in-the-neck once and for all." He raises the Ruby up high, as if to smash it into the ground.

Tails shouts, "Wait!"

Sonic freezes in place. "What's wrong?"

"Well…" Tails shifts around awkwardly. "…the other Sonic is being tethered to this dimension by the Ruby. Once it's gone…he'll be gone too."

"Oh." Sonic lowers the gem again, and turns to his counterpart. "I guess this is it then. Before we say goodbye…" He holds out a fist. "…one last time?" The two share an energetic fist bump. "Oh, and uh…" He scratches awkwardly at the back of his head. "…you remember how I told you your future was gonna be great?" Classic Sonic nods. Possibly thinking back to his last six months in captivity, Sonic finishes, "I…may have exaggerated a bit."

Classic Sonic shrugs as if to say, 'I never really believed you anyways.'

"Just keep being yourself, and I'm sure you'll manage." Sonic gives him the thumbs-up.

Tails approaches Classic Sonic nervously. "You know…you don't have to go. If you want, I bet I can figure out a way to–" Classic Sonic puts a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head and waggling a finger. "Of course. You have your own friends to get back to. Tell your Tails hi for me, okay?" Classic Sonic nods with a smile.

Sonic looks to him one last time. "Alright. Ready to go home, little guy?" In response, Classic Sonic raises an upturned fist and gives a confident smirk, in a familiar pose. "I'll take that as a yes." He once again raises the Ruby over his head. "Okay, for real this time! Goodbye, Phantom Ruby!" He hurls it at the ground as hard as he can. It bounces off of the ground with a pleasant ' _tink'_ sound, completely undamaged. He bends down to pick it up again, chuckling awkwardly. "Heh heh. Guess it's not as fragile as those prototypes, huh?"

The Jackal slowly walks up to him. "I…I know how to destroy it." He holds out his hand. "If…you would allow me the satisfaction?"

Sonic looks from the Ruby to the Jackal, thinking for a few moments. "Well…you helped us out today…so I guess you've earned it." Somewhat reluctantly, Sonic hands it over.

The moment the Ruby touches the Jackal's hand, it takes on the slightest glow. "Finally…I can leave that old me behind." Shadow glances up at the sound of the words.

Sonic looks on with confusion. "Well, go on then. Destroy the Ruby, and the last bit of Infinite will be gone for good."

"That…wasn't quite what I meant." The Ruby begins to glow brighter, filled with the slow-crawling black rings that indicate it's been bonded. Its violet aura begins to wash over him.

"You know…I think I've changed my mind, why don't you just hand the Ruby back, and we'll find another way to–"

" _Enough!_ " With Infinite's shout, a massive negative pulse is unleashed, knocking all off their feet. Wisps and soldiers alike scatter and flee in terror. The Wolf's new friend retreats into his old Wispon, lying on the floor not far away.

Amidst the chaos, Sonic struggles to stand. "What…are you…doing?"

Infinite gives a hearty laugh. "Oh, the poor insect doesn't realize that he's been lied to! How sad."

"But…you said the Ruby…wanted to destroy you!"

"Well, perhaps that part wasn't a lie. Though I must thank you for subduing it for me. It wouldn't have been possible to bond with in such a volatile state. But now, it is under _my_ control."

"You couldn't even stand…to hear Infinite's name!"

" _My_ name!" He calms down with a chuckle. "It was quite the convincing charade, wasn't it? I might have even convinced myself, for a while. But what fool would want to resist this _power_?"

The Wolf grunts loudly in objection.

"Oh, you don't believe me? Adorable."

The Wolf shakes his head fervently.

"You think you see the good in me, do you?" He clutches his free hand over his scarred blue eye. "All just part of the facade. But there was one truth that I told you. You and I _are_ so alike. You found your means to power just as I have. You understand this world just as I do. You don't have to be my enemy." He extends a hand outwards.

The Wolf looks to the ground, clenching a shaking fist. Suddenly, he turns, dives, and rolls along the ground, skillfully snatching his old Burst Wispon from the ground, coming up in a crouch, and pointing it at Infinite. His finger hovers inches from the trigger. The weapon clatters in his trembling hands.

Infinite shakes his head in disappointment. "Even now, still filled with anxiety and doubt. But it's just not the same. I won't force you to flee this time. You don't deserve to be so demeaned. Just remember my offer, child."

"You won't get away with this!" Sonic dives at Infinite.

Infinite darts upwards in a flash as Sonic crashes to the ground beneath him. "I'm afraid I'm in no condition to teach you a lesson now, hedgehog. The Ruby requires far more time to recharge. But rest assured. I'll be back for _you_." Arms outstretched, he drifts backwards into the Null Space portal, laughing maniacally. "Ha ha ha ha ha!" His laughter fades away as he vanishes through the collapsing vortex.

Knuckles gapes at the spot where the portal used to be. "What…just…happened?"

Sonic once again climbs to his feet, dusting himself off. "Right now…Infinite is gone. And Eggman's down too. Right now, the world is safe."

"Hey, what happened to Eggman, anyways?"

Sonic shrugs. "I'm sure we'll figure that out eventually." He turns to the Wolf, who hangs his head and stares at the ground. He puts a hand on his shoulder. "You alright, buddy?" He doesn't look up. "I know you wanted to see some good in him. We all did. Maybe everyone's born with a hero somewhere inside of them, you're proof enough of that. But some people just…stamp it out, until there's nothing left."

The Wolf clenches a fist, as if holding on to the slightest something. In his other hand, the Wisp pokes its head cautiously out of the Wispon, peeking around with its top eye. Seeing that it's safe, it comes the rest of the way out, and starts to poke the Wolf in the shoulder. He finally looks at it. It squeaks and dances around. Its antics are enough to put a smile back on his face. Its job done, it retreats back into his Wispon, apparently quite comfortable there.

"Sonic, look!" Tails points with surprise at Classic Sonic. An odd particle of light drifts away from him. A second follows a moment later.

"What's happening to him?"

Tails looks over the readings on his Handheld. "I think…he's going home."

"But the Ruby wasn't destroyed. I thought you said that's what was keeping him here."

"It was. But…the Ruby's not _in_ this dimension any more, and Sonic's not out there with it. Without them here together, it can't hold him here anymore, not without any Ruby prototypes left to extend its influence between dimensions."

Classic Sonic looks up and down his own arms as he begins to spew more particles of light all over, and his body begins to fade in and out. Above him, the sky has cleared of all but a few white and fluffy clouds, revealing nothing but blue the shade of his fur behind them. Quite some time must have passed since Eggman was defeated.

Tails steps up to him with a smile. "I guess…this is goodbye." He offers his hand forward. "Get home safely, Sonic." Classic Sonic steps forwards to take his hand. Tails gives a satisfied nod. "And thanks for everything."

With his other hand, Classic Sonic gives a thumbs-up with a smirk and a nod of his own. Then he looks out to the rest of the group of heroes, who give their own waves, grunts, and nods in farewell. Even Shadow gives a casual flick of the hand.

Classic Sonic's hand slips through Tails' as he continues to fade away. He takes the hand back, clenches into a fist, and looks at it for a while. Then he offers the fist back out. Tails looks at his own hand in understanding. Despite no longer being able to touch, the two gently meet their fists in the middle in a spiritual fist bump. Finally, Classic Sonic takes his hand back into a big wave at everyone, along with a great big smile, as the last of the light, along with him, fades away.

Tails reaches out as if to call him back. But he stops to hang his head instead. Sonic steps up behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Cheer up, Tails. I'm sure we'll run into him again." Both of them turn back to the rest of the group. Sonic opens his hands to begin a speech. "Alright, guys! It's time we cleaned up the mess that Eggman left this world in. And I'm not talking about those illusions he dreamed up for us. We need to fix the _real_ world we _all_ live in!" One by one, everyone grunts and nods in agreement.

Tails seems especially convinced. "True that." The Wolf beside him happily grunts as well.

"Come on, let's go!" Sonic turns off to the horizon with a raised fist.

Everyone together cheers, "Yeah!"

—–—

 **Null Space**

 **Some time later**

Blacklight's pod continues to drift slowly through the empty void. "Contained within this pod is a creature of unspeakable power…"

Infinite, the Phantom Ruby secured to his chest, floats such that he can continue to stare into the glass. He still has no mask. "That face…" He clenches a fist. "The world continues to taunt me, by sending me _that face_ , just to remind me of the weakling I once was. But I suppose that's the way it goes." He puts his hand over his entire face, as if to push up a mask that isn't there. "Clearly, you are not Shadow the Hedgehog. But I will just as gladly enjoy tearing you apart!" He grabs the side of the pod, and tears off the glass cover, tossing it into the void. "Come, then! Show me how _'unspeakable'_ your powers truly are!"

Blacklight lies exposed to the open space, still with the same calm smile on his face. He doesn't stir in the slightest.

Infinite growls angrily. He moves right up to Blacklight's face. "Why won't you wake up!?"

In an instant, the hedgehog's hand wraps around the Ruby. Blacklight opens his eyes just to give Infinite a wink. Then he delivers a hard kick, sending the Jackal flying away through the void, separated from the Ruby.

"Noooo!" The Jackal's cry fades away as he tumbles farther and farther.

Blacklight is occupied only with his new prize, an intense look of glee on his face. "I have a feeling that today is going to be a _grrreat_ day!"

 **To be continued…**


	32. S0 E27: No One Left to Save the World

**BREAKING NEWS**

Citizens flee in terror through the streets of Spagonia. A crimson laser blast from the sky impacts the side of a building, sending the entire wall crumbling down into the street, nearly crushing several bystanders, and drawing out even more screams of terror. Though chaos can still be heard throughout the city, the street has nearly cleared completely as a pair of pointed black shoes descend into view, followed by the rest of the figure clearly recognizable as Infinite. "That's right, insects. Run! Run from your new masters! See how far it will get you." Something is different about him. The mask has a long, solid line running down its right side, as if hastily welded together. Coming out from behind his mask is not the fur of a jackal, but the spikes of a hedgehog. He has no bushy tail. Even the patterns on his body, on close inspection, seem to be the result of a tight bodysuit, not of actual fur.

He holds his hand out to the side, and out of a glitchy red aura, an object begins to form in his grip. It appears to be a tall flag, bearing the familiar insignia of the Eggman Empire. He lifts it up slightly, then drives it down hard into the ground. "This territory is hereby claimed in the name of the Empire. Those who resist…well, I'll decide what to do with you later." He lets out a high-pitched laugh. The imperial flag billows in the draft created by the numerous fires all around.

The image freezes, zooming back into the corner of the television screen. A newscaster sits on the set, surrounded by various news and channel logos. "As you can see from this footage, recorded just hours ago, yet another major city has fallen to the Eggman Empire, headed once again by a face that none of us could ever forget. In light of this crisis, there is just one question on everyone's mind. 'Where is Sonic the Hedgehog?'"

Not waiting to hear the rest of the report, Tails shuts off the screen with a sigh.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 27**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 1: No One Left to Save the World**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **June 24th, 0 B.E. - Five months ago**

 **Lux Volcano**

Eggman shouts loudly, "What are you waiting for!? Finish them, slave!"

On the precipice above the magma, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy all struggle to hold down the monstrous, shadowy form of Chaos the Hedgehog, while Sonic stands with his hand wrapped around the corrupted Moonstone in Chaos' chest, both of their eyes closed.

"Do it! Do it now! I command you!"

At once, Sonic and Chaos both open their eyes, as the aura around Chaos quickly fades. The miniscule Eggman device planted on the Moonstone shatters into dust.

Eggman begins to frantically press a button on the small remote in his hand. "Why isn't this thing working!?"

With his still monstrously-sized hand, Chaos crushes the fake black Emerald held in it, and tendrils of shadowy energy fly out from it as it crumbles away. The dark power source gone, his body begins to revert to its normal form. Above them, the false eclipse fades away, replaced by a normal noontime sun.

Sonic points to Eggman with a scowl on his face. "I'll tell you why, Eggman. Because your dirty tricks can never beat out all of us working together. Because there is Light in the bonds we share together, powerful Light that your Darkness can never overcome!"

Still futilely jamming at buttons, Eggman begins to chuckle nervously. "Heh heh…" Knuckles pounds a fist into an open hand. Amy props up her hammer over her shoulder. They all start to walk slowly towards him. "Grr… You win this time, hedgehog!"

As Eggman retreats in his damaged Egg Mobile out through the top of the volcano, he shouts, "Next time, you won't be so lucky!"

—–—

 **Eggmanland**

"Every single time!" Eggman pounds his fists onto a dusty old computer console. "Every time I forge an alliance, it always ends in failure!"

Orbot comments aside to Cubot, "I thought that _all_ of his plans end in failure."

Cubot attempts to comfort, "Don't worry, boss. I'm sure that the right person for you is out there somewhere. One day, you'll meet a special someone, and she–"

Orbot smacks him to stop him from continuing the misconceived comment any further. "Although, Cubot does have a point, sir. Perhaps the problem is that you simply haven't allied with the right person yet."

Eggman, somewhat distracted, looks past them, to a point in the air where a strange but familiar dark vortex is beginning to form. "Or perhaps…I already have." The vortex expands into a full portal, and the violet glow of the Phantom Ruby precedes its bearer. "Infinite, the one ally who _never_ betrayed me! Allow me to welcome…you?"

What emerges from the portal is not a jackal, but a hedgehog, with white and green fur, though with an appearance much like Shadow. He holds the large, original Phantom Ruby in one hand. He inhales sharply, as if breathing in fresh air for the first time. But then he starts to cough and choke. "Ugh, this air is foul! And here I was looking forward to the first proper breaths of my new life!" He suddenly seems to notice Eggman for the first time. "Wait, who're you?"

Eggman is left speechless for several moments. "Wait…I recognize you…. You're Uncle Alfred's creation, aren't you? You're Sunlight! But…how did you obtain the Phantom Ruby?"

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid you have me confused with someone who had that name in an old life. I am Blacklight, _Destroyer of Worlds_!"

Eggman clears his throat uncomfortably. "And…erm…what worlds, exactly, have you destroyed?"

"Oh…well, none yet. But I'm sure I'll get there eventually."

"Right…but where is Infinite?"

"Innewho? Oh, you must be talking about that fellow the ugly face. Well, he's the one I stole this…" He looks at Ruby in his hand. "…whatever it is, from. We were in this…strange sort of place. I believe, perhaps, it was some sort of netherworld. I was dead, after all. But this thing…the moment I felt its presence, I knew it was my ticket to escape. And now, here I am, risen again. And who do I see first, but…Mustache Junior! I recognize you as well! Uh, what was your name again?" He puts his hand up. "Hold on, don't tell me. It was…uh…" He snaps his fingers by is head as he thinks "…ah…Egghead, right? Doctor Egghead?"

"That's Egg _man_."

"Of course. My mistake. Quite fitting, either way."

"Why…are you here?"

"Hm." Blacklight puts a hand to his chin. "Good question. It took me quite a while to figure out how to use this thing to break out. Or, was it not very long? Time was very strange in that place. At least, I think it was. Anyways, I didn't really much care where I ended up, I just wanted free. So here I ended up. So I suppose the better question is…what now?

Eggman gives a devilish smirk as he's struck by an idea. "Well, Blacklight, you just so happened to have wandered into this world's leading expert on that Phantom Ruby you have there. I believe that I could teach you how to use it to its fullest potential. And in exchange, you could help me with my…research."

"Hmm…an enticing offer, Doctor. I'll tell you what. Help me take over the world, and you have yourself a deal."

"Well…I was going to ask you the same thing."

"Excellent! When do we start?"

Eggman indicates a direction with his hands. "Right this way." The two stroll off together.

Left alone, Orbot turns to Cubot. "How does he remember the Doctor's message? I thought that experiment was a failure."

Cubot shrugs. "I don't know, but I think that guy might have a few screws loose, if you know what I mean."

"You would know, wouldn't you?"

"Wait, I have loose screws!? Where!?" He starts to look around himself frantically. Orbot sighs, burying his face in a hand.

—–—

 **November 6th, 0 B.E. - Present Day**

 **Mystic Ruins - Tails' Laboratory**

Sonic the Hedgehog, unconscious, lies out with several pieces of monitoring equipment hooked up to him, including a heart monitor, which beeps slowly but steadily. Chaos the Hedgehog sits by his bedside, meditating. A pair of footsteps approach. He opens an eye to see. "Miles. I sense that you're troubled."

Tails looks straight to Sonic, nodding slowly. "Infinite just took another city for Eggman. He's taking control of the world again, piece by piece."

Chaos closes his eyes again. "And yet, here you are, watching it happen on television."

"Don't say that! I need to be here for Sonic!"

"Believe me, Miles. I understand your concern. On his order, you let him go into battle without you. And he nearly perished. Had I not been there to rescue him, he likely would have. You don't want to leave him without your support ever again."

Tails looks down sorrowfully. "Sonic's been in this coma for weeks now. I need to be here for him."

"But you are troubled. Because you also need to be out there for the world."

"What if something goes wrong, what if Sonic gets worse?"

"The world outside _is_ getting worse. And I sense that what you say…is not your greatest concern. I sense a much greater fear in you."

Tails clenches a fist. "You're right. I'm scared. Because…because…I'm not strong enough to fight a war without Sonic! At least if I stay here, I know that I can help him! But out there, there's nothing I can do, not against power like that! Not again…."

Chaos stands up, and places a hand on Tails' shoulder. "It's okay to be afraid. You shouldn't keep your emotions suppressed. You must listen to what they tell you. And today, your fear tells you that you alone is not enough. So don't go alone. I've seen firsthand, that this world is full of heroes. Surely there is someone, someone you can trust, who can fill the Controller's role in this fight."

"Maybe…maybe there is. But…"

"I understand. As his friend, you feel the obligation to remain by his side above all else. But as his protector, it is not just my obligation. It is my sworn duty. I can promise you, he is safe in my hands."

"I…I guess you're right. I should probably get looking then."

Chaos nods. "I wish you luck. And may the Balance favor you in this fight." They both look back down at the unconscious form of Sonic.

—–—

 **Seaside Hill - The Whale Island**

Calm waves crash over the checkered cliffside. Seagulls caw in the distance. A soft ocean breeze blows. On the nose of the long, whale-shaped island, Shadow the Hedgehog sits before the open air, meditating. A large wave crashes against the cliff below him, spraying him with a light mist. He doesn't seem to notice. Familiar words echo in his mind. _"Shadow, what do you think it's like on Earth?"_

 _In his mind, he responds, "Maria, I just don't know anything anymore…"_ He shakes his real head. _"I always hoped that I'd find answers down here. I found nothing but but hardship. Suffering. No matter what I do, I can't ever seem to find who I really am. I don't even know what–"_

"Shadow! Hey, Shadow!" Shadow winces at the sound of Tails' shrill calls. With a sigh, he stands back up, but still looks out over the ocean. Tails finally approaches close, panting a bit. "Shadow, you wouldn't believe what I had to go through to find you! What're you doing all the way out here?"

Shadow glances back just enough to meet his eyes. "Make it quick. What do you want?"

"Shadow…haven't you seen the news?"

"No."

"Well…Infinite is back. He and Eggman are taking over the world again."

For a moment, Shadow raises an eyebrow. But then he changes his mind. "Sounds like Sonic's problem."

"That's the thing…Sonic's been in a coma for weeks now. Infinite nearly killed him."

"Your point?"

"Shadow…we need your help. The world needs your help. Last time, the world was almost destroyed going without Sonic for so long. But if you step up, if you take his place, you can save the world!"

"I don't do other people's jobs. Not anymore."

"Shadow…"

"If that's all you had to say, then get out of here."

"There…there's something else. Infinite…I don't think it's the same person he used to be. It's someone else in the same mask. And Sonic said…before he was taken down…that under the mask…he looked like you."

Shadow instantly turns at him with rage. "What!?"

"But, I've see on TV, his fur is white and–"

Shadow grabs him by the scruff of fur on his chest. "His name, what's his name!?"

Absolutely terrified, Tails stammers out, "I-I, I don't know, he-he still calls himself Infinite!"

Shadow takes a deep breath, closes his eyes, and lets go gently, muttering, "Sorry."

Another voice cries out, "Shadow! You're actually here! Ha ha! This is fantastic!" Infinite slowly drifts down, settling down onto the center of the island.

Shadow clenches his trembling fists tight, recognizing the voice, but unwilling to turn to its source.

"And here I find you harassing children! I'm very disappointed in you, Shadow. Want some help with this bully, child?" Tails takes a step behind Shadow.

Shadow turns slowly, trying to contain his intense fury. "Blacklight."

"Welp, guess the secret's out." He grabs his mask and pulls it off, revealing the face of Blacklight underneath. "Can't get anything past you. Though I guess I wasn't trying very hard."

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, well that's an easy one. I was out getting ready to conquer Grand Metropolis, but then I felt this really familiar angst. And who could it've been but Shadow the Hedgehog, angstiest of them all? How's it going, what've you been up to?"

"No. _What_ are you doing here?"

"Oh, I get it. You want to hear the story of how I cheated death. You may try, but you can't kill me, Shadow the Hedgehog. Using the power of this Phantom Ruby here, I was able to return to the land of the living."

"I didn't kill you. I made sure you survived. I never wanted you dead!"

Blacklight raises an eyebrow in surprise. "Is that what you tell yourself? Well, your story doesn't really hold up, I'm afraid. Face it Shadow. You killed me. But I have risen again. And with the power this miracle has granted me, I can take over this world, as I was always destined to do!"

"Why the mask?"

"Oh, this thing?" He twirls around the mask in his hand. He shrugs, and puts it back on. "Well, you know a thing or two about masks, don't you, Shadow?" Shadow gasps. "Oh yes, I've been doing my homework. Your little romp around Westopolis made for quite the interesting story. Shadow the Hedgehog as a vigilante! Who would've guessed!? So, I think you know all about this mask here. It makes me look…you know, spooky. Don't you think it's a good look for me? It makes people afraid. Although…" He starts to tug at the neck of his fake jackal fur bodysuit. "…I could do without this sweaty thing."

Tails finally manages to speak out, "I don't understand. Who are you?"

"Shut up, kid. Or I'll break your spine again." Tails retreats back behind Shadow again. Blacklight looks back to Shadow. "Well, enough chit chat. I think it's time we get down to business. You see, you owe me."

"I don't owe you anything."

"Incorrect! You signed a verbal contract, remember? You owe me…an apple. With interest. Compounded over the past forty years or so, that comes out to about…three thousand! Give or take. So pay up." He makes a beckoning motion with one hand. Shadow doesn't even bother responding. "Come now, don't be like that. You don't want to gain a reputation as a deal-breaker, do you?" Shadow rolls his eyes. "Fine, fine, I see that you don't even have any apples on you. Very irresponsible of you. So how about I offer you a way out of the contract? All you have to do…is beat me in a fight." He opens his arms wide. "So, shall we dance?"

Finally having his language spoken, Shadow immediately charges at the masked Blacklight. He zips out of the way, adding an elegant twirl at the end. "Come on, even Speedy could do better than that!" Shadow charges back in for another attack.

Tails yells out to him, "Watch out, Shadow! Infinite is even faster than–"

"I know!" Shadow charges one more time, but this time Blacklight zips upwards, then immediately hurls down a bolt of energy, which Shadow barely dives back in time to avoid. "Chaos Spear!" As he lands, Shadow hurls out an attack of his own.

Blacklight swats the spear away with a hand. Then he zips right up to Shadow's face, speaking into his ear. "Here's a tip. Fight better." Shadow caught by surprise, he strikes him directly, sending him tumbling back towards Tails.

"Chaos Spear!" Getting up quickly, Shadow throws several more attacks.

Blacklight easily deflects each one. "I said, _'better'_." He begins to charge a crimson light in one hand. "You're already starting to bore me Shadow. Here I thought you would still offer me a challenge." He unleashes the laser out of his hand, Shadow skating just ahead of it. "Perhaps my memory is starting to fail me after forty years."

Shadow leaps off of the ground, charging at Blacklight in the air. "Chaos Control!" He suddenly disappears, reappearing behind Blacklight to deliver a kick.

Blacklight catches Shadow's foot it one hand. "Did I mention? Speedy tried that too." He throws him straight down into the ground with incredible force.

Shadow struggles back to his feet. He glances back at Tails, who looks to him with fear and concern. He glances up at Blacklight, who, laughing, charges another laser attack. He thinks, _"I…I can't beat him. He's too powerful with that Ruby."_ He glances back at Tails again. _"He won't hesitate to move on when he's done with me."_ Growling, he dives not at Blacklight, but at Tails. "Chaos Control!" The moment they touch, they both disappear, as the laser slices through the spot where they had just been standing.

Blacklight cancels the attack, shaking his head with disappointment. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Never thought of you as the type to run away, Shadow. And I didn't even have to break out the illusions. I suppose you still owe me those apples after all."

—–—

Not far away, Shadow and Tails reappear before the red and white gates of an Ocean Palace. Tails looks up to Shadow in confusion. "I thought…I thought you said you beat this guy before. Right?"

Shadow closes his eyes. "I did. It's different this time. The power of that Ruby, combined with his own…it's like nothing I've ever felt before." He shakes his head. "He's already won. If I can't beat him, and Sonic can't beat him, then there's nothing we can do."

"That can't be true! There has to be way!"

"Unless you know someone else who can stand a chance against that kind power, there isn't."

"Wait…maybe you're right, maybe there _is_ a way."

"And what would that be?"

"Well…Sonic was able to beat Infinite two years ago, but he couldn't beat this Blacklight guy now. And you could beat Blacklight, but you can't beat him as Infinite."

"So you think we could do it together. Well you told me that Sonic isn't in any condition to fight. So we still have nothing."

"Not necessarily. Because I know someone else who beat Infinite in a fight."

—–—

 **Sunset Heights**

"Are you sure this is the place?" Shadow stands in front of a door by the sloped street of the once-ruined city. But the rebuilding seems to have been completed a long time ago. A nearby street sign reads 'Park Ave.'

Tails nods. "This is it."

Shadow knocks several times on the door. There is no answer. "There's no one here. This was a waste of time."

"If there's no one here, then we have to keep looking. It's the only way we can beat Infinite."

They both suddenly turn to face the source of a familiar, pulsating sound. A few streets away, the new Infinite descends down between the buildings.

"He must've followed us!"

"No, look!" Tails points up excitedly at the skyline, where a figure appears above the buildings. It's a red-furred Wolf garbed in dark green, with black glasses and a familiar Red Burst Wispon, which he points beneath him, letting loose an explosion that sends him even higher. Once he's high enough, he redirects his weapon, letting loose a jet of flames at the new Infinite. "That's him! We have to go help him!" The two run off in the Wolf's direction.

The masked Blacklight holds up a hand, deflecting the flames around him. A moment later, the Wolf lands on the ground in front of him. "Well, who is this? A defiant? I've already had my fill of fighting today, but I suppose another couldn't hurt."

The Wolf growls angrily.

"My, that's quite the death-stare you have there. Have I done something to make you angry? I mean, besides invading your city, of course."

The Wolf points his weapon, giving another growl.

"Oh, you're one of those silent types, aren't you?" He rolls his eyes. "I hate those. I mean, is it really so hard for you just to carry a conversation? Come on. If you actually told me what had you so riled up, we might be able to get somewhere. Instead, we have to play charades. It's so exhausting trying to figure out what you people are saying all time!"

Made even more angry, the Wolf growls again, firing the weapon. Just as before, Blacklight blocks the flames with his hand. "Do you expect me to be afraid of that silly little device of yours? I think you have this backwards." Suddenly, a grappling hook wire flies out from the flames, wrapping around his hand. "Wha!?" A moment later, the Wolf himself flies through the dissipating flames, pulled along the wire, finally landing a solid hit on Blacklight.

Blacklight reels back a step. "Tch. Lucky shot." He points his hand outwards. "It will be your last." He releases a continuous stream of crimson cubes pointed at the Wolf. Knowing what it means to be hit, the Wolf acts quickly, firing another grappling wire upwards to pull himself off of the ground. "Hmph." Blacklight raises a wall of cubes in the Wolf's path. The Wolf quickly detaches wire to avoid flying straight into the wall. But without any means of control left, he begins to flail as he falls towards the ground. Blacklight laughs as, with a wave of his arm, he creates a wave of cubes along the floor. The Wolf flais even harder.

"I've got you!" Tails grabs on to the Wolf's hand, keeping him above ground and flying him over to safety. The Wolf looks up to him with a smile. "Good to see you too, but we can catch up later." Tails sets him down next to Shadow, who glares off at Blacklight.

Blacklight, through his mask, glares right back. "Shadow. Back again so soon? I hope it's because you brought my payment." He waits impatiently. "…No? Bad on you Shadow, very, very bad on you."

"I'm here to stop you. You won't be taking any more cities." The Wolf looks over to his new ally in the fight with a nod and a smile. To his slight confusion, Shadow doesn't nod back.

Blacklight laughs, as he generates another Eggman Empire flag in his hand. "Oh, won't I?" He plunges the base of the flag into the ground, propping it up firmly. "Oops. Too late. City's mine, you can go home."

Shadow growls as he dashes in for an attack. After taking a moment to realize that the fight's resumed, the Wolf runs in after him.

Blacklight throws out an energy bolt, which Shadow sidesteps, leaving the Wolf behind him barely a moment to slide underneath. He quickly shakes it off.

Shadow leaps into a somersault and a kick, aimed at Blacklight's head. Blacklight zips out of the way in an instant. "Oops, you missed me!" Shadow dives in for a punch, only to meet the same result. "Nope." Shadow starts to attack furiously. "Ooh, try again." Blacklight zips back. "Wait, maybe that was bad advice." To the side again. "How about–" He pops his head down, then back up just as quickly. "…Try harder?"

Shadow tries to sweep Blacklight's legs, but Blacklight flashes into the air. "Come on, Shadow, whatever happened to your–" He's cut off as a new wire wraps around him, followed a moment later by a solid strike from the Wolf. While he's still distracted, Shadow goes in for a spin attack, knocking him still further back. Blacklight no longer able to block, the Wolf fires another jet of flames from his Wispon, this time hitting its mark. Shadow seemed prepared for another attack, but now has to duck and shield his face to avoid getting burned.

Tails shouts from the sidelines, "Come on, you two have to work _together_!"

For the first time, the two look at each other, giving a mutual nod. Then both go in for a finishing attack at once, and end up colliding into each other instead.

Blacklight, already recovered from the last attack, laughs hysterically at their folly. "You two would make a great comedy duo, you know that? 'Presenting, Mr. not-so-tall, dark, and brooding, and his mute sidekick, _this guy_!' It–" Suddenly, his Phantom Ruby starts to vibrate and pulsate, as if sending him a message. "Seriously!? Right now!?" He shakes his head with a sigh. "Well guys, it's been fun, but Mustache Junior doesn't like to be kept waiting." He suddenly perks his head up. "Ooh, I know! I'll leave you some toys to play with while I'm gone. I've heard these guys are in-season right now." He waves his hand above his head with a snap, and three figures begin to appear on the ground beneath him out of crimson cubes. They quickly solidify into Replicas of Zavok, Chaos 0, and Metal Sonic. "Oh, and you, guy, with the face." He points at the Wolf. "We should play charades again sometime. You're pretty good, you know that? Well, toodle-oo!" He flies off at his top speed.

The three heroes stare down the three Replicas. Zavok, at point of the Replicas, hisses loudly, and it becomes immediately apparent that something isn't right. He has a live snake instead of a tongue. Tails scratches his head. "Well that's new."

Shadow nods. "Blacklight doesn't know what he's making, he's just copying what he's seen."

"Well, they still look pretty tough."

"Tough? These Replicas go down easily. Blacklight is just distracting us so we don't go after him."

"We can't let them terrorize the city."

Shadow nods, then runs in at the Zavok Replica. The Wolf goes for Metal Sonic, and even Tails, without fear, charges at Chaos 0.

—–—

 **Eggmanland**

Blacklight descends gently onto the freshly-cleaned and polished floor of the hidden base. Orbot and Cubot are still at work polishing the walls. "Care to explain why you pulled me out in the middle of a fight?"

Eggman, occupied with an odd glass chamber filled with familiar-looking cubes and tendrils, turns around to face Blacklight. "That's because I have something to share with you, that I think you'll find quite exciting." He presses a few buttons on the console, and the material in the chamber begins to condense, into the pyramidal shape of a Phantom Ruby prototype. Another press of a key causes the glass around the Ruby to draw away, leaving it floating in open space. "Behold, the latest in an entire new line of Phantom Ruby prototypes!"

Blacklight, removing his mask, raises an eyebrow. "Prototypes?"

"This one was made especially for you. Care to try it out?"

Blacklight stares oddly at the gem for quite some time. "…Answer something for me, would you, Doctor?"

"Well…of course."

"Why do I wear this sweaty old suit?"

"To inspire fear in the hearts of your enemies, of course."

"You mean, _your_ enemies?"

"Well…I…"

"Why do I conquer cities in the name of the _Eggman_ Empire?"

"You…said yourself, you wanted to–"

"And now, you expect me to give up my ultimate source of power to you, so that I can use one of your _cheap knockoffs_ , instead? Doctor, what kind of fool do you take me for?"

"I've done nothing of the sort! I offer you my expertise on that Ruby of yours, I offer you my entire robot army to command, and all you can do is complain? You should learn your place, hedgehog."

Blacklight is taken aback. "Excuse me!? _My_ place? Learn your own place, Mustache. You're a weak fool, just like everyone else on this pathetic planet! Consider our partnership over. I've grown tired of you."

"Over!? How do you expect to conquer the world without _my_ army?"

This gives Blacklight pause. "An army, you say? I suppose I will need that, won't I? But I believe…" He waves a hand and snaps a finger, and a cluster of figures are generated between him and Eggman. They all share their basic shape with him and Shadow, though they appear to massless, composed entirely of a purplish, shadowy energy, save for their blank, slightly luminescent white eyes. "…I have that part covered."

"Fine then. Leave, if you think you can accomplish anything at all without me. You'll find me a formidable foe."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Were you expecting _me_ to leave? No no." He waggles a finger. "I like this place. I'm keeping it. _You're_ leaving."

"What!? You dare think to take _Eggmanland_ away from–"

"Shut up!" With Blacklight's shout, a massive negative energy wave is released from the Phantom Ruby, knocking Eggman off of his feet.

Cubot drops his rag, shouting, "Don't worry, boss, we'll protect you!"

Orbot holds him back. "I wouldn't, if I were you."

Blacklight takes a few steps towards Eggman as he climbs to his feet. "Now, Doctor, I suggest you leave my territory while I'm still in a good mood. My friends here will be escorting you out." He indicates the shadowy creatures he's created. "Oh, and…thanks for cleaning the place up for me."

Eggman dusts himself off. "Orbot, Cubot, gather my equipment. We're leaving." He leans in close to Blacklight. "You've made a big mistake today, Blacklight. There are secrets to that Ruby that you can never hope to understand."

—–—

Metal Sonic and Zavok are both launched onto Chaos 0 in a heap, as all three dissolve away in a mess of glitched particles. Shadow steps through the last of the illusory haze, to the imperial flag that still protrudes from the ground. He rips it free from the pavement, and snaps it over his knee, as the two broken pieces dissolve just as the Replicas did. "This city belongs to the United Federation and its people. I will _not_ let Blacklight take that away."

Tails cheers, "Yeah!" The Wolf happily raises a fist along with him. As he does, something pops out of his Wispon. It's a small red creature, a Burst Wisp, bouncing around and squeaking happily in shared celebration. It freezes in place as it notices Tails for the first time. The it soars over to him, squeaking and jabbering even more excitedly. Tails laughs at the little alien. "Nice to see you too, Bruno."

Shadow raises an eyebrow. "Bruno?"

"Yeah, don't you remember? This little guy wanted to stick around after the last war."

The Wolf approaches Shadow, crossing his arms with an angry stare. Bruno the Wisp soars up beside him, replicating his pose and expression.

"You have a problem?"

Though the Wolf doesn't move, Bruno begins to squeak angrily, waggling a tentacle as if to scold Shadow.

Not needing to be asked, Tails pulls out his Handheld with a slight sigh. "Hold on, I'll translate." He looks through the readings as Bruno continues to squeak. Tails looks up from the device, to the Wisp, to the Wolf, and back to the Wisp. "I think…he's speaking _for_ him. He says, 'What was that supposed to be back there? I thought we were supposed to be working together.'"

Shadow scoffs. "Not my fault you kept getting in my way." The Wolf and the Wisp continue to glare at him. "Look, you and I may not be the well-oiled machine you were with Sonic, but we're the only ones who can take down Blacklight." The Wolf gives him a look of mild surprise. "Blacklight is _my_ problem. I'll do whatever it takes to fix it. Even…" He finishes with a hint of disdain, "… _teamwork_."

The Wolf takes a few steps back, sighing, but nodding. Bruno, apparently scared of something, lets out a terrified squeak, and retreats back into its Wispon. No one seems to notice. Until the glittering red scimitar appears around the Wolf's throat.

Tails gasps, as Shadow looks on with surprise. "Showing that face in front of me again, _Infinite_? That's pretty bold."

The maskless Jackal with blue and yellow eyes presses his blade closer to the Wolf's throat. "I'm not here for you, hedgehog. Make any move, and he dies."

"If you aren't here for me, then you must be for him. Do you really expect me to believe that you'll let him die?"

"Do _you_ really want to take that risk?"

Tails puts out his hands nervously. "Please, don't hurt him, we can work this out. What is it that you want?"

The Jackal looks to Shadow with contained fury. "Your _twin_ stole the Phantom Ruby from me, and imprisoned me in my own Null Space." He finishes through clenched teeth, "I want, my Ruby, back."

Tails, still filled with fear, becomes struck with a hint of confusion. "If you were trapped in Null Space…how did you get out?"

—–—

 **Null Space**

All around, that which was once an endless void of black and purple has become littered with small tears of blinding white light. Out of one particularly large tear, a robotic hand reaches, wielding a familiar-looking golden scepter. On the body that the arm is attached to, an insignia of a regal crown can be faintly made out.

 **To be continued…**


	33. S0 E28: The Gears Begin to Turn

**BREAKING NEWS**

A news reporter, the same from before, stands not on a set, but out in the field, on a high elevated road of Eggman's futuristic capital city, Metropolis, appearing to be quite nervous about something. Clearing her throat, she begins, "In an…unprecedented event, Infinite, the commander of the Eggman army, has personally requested to make a live public announcement, right here, right now. We were…" She gulps. "…compelled, to allow it. Viewers, be advised…we have no idea what's about to happen." She makes a gesture to the side.

Held by an unsteady hand, the camera shakily pans over to the right, where Blacklight stands. Though he still wears the mask, scarf, gloves and shoes of Infinite, he seems to have removed the bodysuit, exposing his natural white fur beneath the glowing Ruby. He looks right into the camera curiously. "Ooh, am I on TV now?" He starts to wave excitedly. "Hi Shadow, hi–…uh…well, I guess I don't know anyone else."

The reporter comments from offscreen, "You…said you had an announcement, Mr. Infinite?"

"Oh, right the announcement." He clears his throat. "I'm here to inform you all that the Eggman Empire and I no longer hang. Citizens of the Eggman Empire need no longer fear the tyranny of the Mustache. You can all now consider yourselves under the protection of the…" He stops to think for a moment. "…mm…the…Infinite Imperium!"

Suddenly, Eggman's voice declares over a distant loudspeaker, "You won't be taking my capital today, traitorous rat!" The camera shifts and zooms upwards, onto a massive red and orange Eggman airship floating high above the city.

Blacklight clears his throat, and the camera moves back down to him. He's holding up a finger. "Hold on a moment while I take care of this." He flies straight up towards the airship, trailing a violet aura behind him. As he does, the airship begins to fire down a hailstorm of laser blasts, most of which pass him by, raining down onto the street below. Accompanied by the sound of terrified screams, the footage begins to shake and turn violently as the cameraman flees from the destruction. After one particularly close blast, the footage cuts to static.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 28**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 2: The Gears Begin to Turn**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **Sunset Heights**

The Jackal who was called Infinite presses his crimson blade against the Wolf's throat. He speaks through clenched teeth, "I want, my Ruby, back _._ "

Tails, filled with fear and confusion, questions, "If you were trapped in Null Space…how did you get out?"

"Be silent, boy." He forcibly turns the Wolf around to face him, still keeping the sword pointed at his throat. "You were the one who overcame the Ruby's power. You will help me get it back."

The Wolf looks down to the tip of the sword, then back up to Infinite's scarred face, with a look of some combination of disappointment and concern.

"You find my blade unnecessary?"

Tails encourages, "He's right. We're all going after Blacklight. Maybe…we can work something out? Without threatening anyone?"

Shadow rolls his eyes. "You can't be serious."

Ignoring him, the Wolf nods to Infinite encouragingly.

Tails keeps trying, "If you want help from one of us, maybe we can all help each other. We can…" He doesn't seem to want to make the deal, but he gives in. "We can all get the Ruby away from Eggman, together."

Infinite glances down with hesitation at the sword. "I…I won't let you trick me." For emphasis, he jabs the blade forward just an inch. " _You_ will help me get the Ruby."

Sighing at first, Shadow speaks slowly, "What would any of us have to gain from tricking you? It looks to me like you have _nothing_. You're pathetic and weak, and I could knock you down in a second if I wanted to. And you're trying to threaten us with a hostage we all know you won't harm. It doesn't look like you have much of a choice."

Infinite tightens his grip on the blade, glaring at Shadow with fury. But then he glances over at the Wolf, who still gives him the same look as before, lacking any fear. Slowly, Infinite lets the blade drop down to his side. Bruno the Wisp pokes his top eye out of the Wolf's Wispon, but retreats back in upon seeing the Jackal.

Tails takes a step forwards. "So tell us…what happened to you?"

Infinite again tightens his grip around the hilt of the blade. "Within Null Space, I discovered a containment device." He looks over to Shadow. "Containing a hedgehog with _your_ face."

"And you woke him up!?"

Infinite continues without answering directly, "He deceived me for long enough to steal the Ruby, and cast me off into the void. There I remained. There was no escape. Not until…much time had passed. I don't know how long."

Tails answers the unspoken question slowly. "The war ended…almost two years ago."

"Two years ago… So much time, I spent trapped in my own prison."

"Then how did you get out?"

"I don't know how it's possible…but some time ago…I believe the Phantom Ruby was damaged. And that damage was embodied by countless fractures in Null Space. I was able to escape through one of these fractures."

Shadow finishes, "So here you are, mindlessly pursuing the very thing that trapped you."

"I'll do whatever it takes to get my Ruby back."

"I was talking about Blacklight." Though he makes the remark confidently, Shadow's expression wavers after a moment as he seems to recognize a familiarity in Infinite's words.

"I don't care who has it. But if you're going to open my way to the Ruby…I'll help you do it."

Tails cheers, "Great! Now that we're a team, we should get to work!" The Wolf raises a fist as well. The other two roll their eyes in sync.

—–—

 **Eggman Empire Fortress**

Eggman stares at the readings on a cracked but functional console screen, tugging at his mustache in contemplation. "Can you confirm these readings?"

Orbot, from the console of a familiar chamber, answers back, "Confirmed, sir. The identification codes line up with the Eggman identification system."

"And yet their specific identification numbers don't match anything registered on the system. They're my robots, but _I_ didn't make them." He contemplates for a moment longer. "Activate the prototype. Prepare to pull them through."

"Aye aye, sir." Orbot begins to work at the console, and inside the chamber, a Phantom Ruby prototype of the traditional shape begins to glow.

While the Ruby prepares, Eggman turns to Cubot. "Cubot, status update!"

"The airship sustained heavy damage, but Infinite has just fled from the city. Metropolis is yours, boss!"

"Of course it's mine, you twit! That rat has no claim on any of _my_ territory."

"Well, besides the half of your territory around Eggmanland that he did take."

Eggman growls.

"I'm just saying, it's lucky you had this old base as a backup, or else–"

Orbot intentionally interrupts, "Sir, the Ruby is charged, and the signals have been locked on to."

"Excellent. Open the portal."

Orbot presses a few more keys on the console, and the Ruby prototype begins to pulsate intensely. A small black point in the space in the center of the room begins to expand. Cubot flees and hides behind an empty chamber, trembling, terrified of the opening black vortex. Finally, the Null Space portal opens wide enough to let out a troop of five egg-shaped robots, before collapsing closed again.

Eggman opens his arms wide. "Let me be the first to welcome you all, to my wonderful dimension!"

The leader of the troop, wearing a billowing red cape, a jacket similar in appearance to that of the Eggman that stands before him, and a bronze chestplate emblazoned with the insignia of a regal crown, points his glass-topped scepter at the Doctor in response. Behind him, the rest of the Hard Boiled Heavies take similar stances of challenge.

"Now, now, let's not be so hasty, hm? I've been looking forward to meeting the creations of my…shorter, counterpart."

Heavy King lowers his scepter slightly, scrutinizing Eggman closely.

"Yes, that's right. I'm not the Doctor Eggman that you know. And it seems that he couldn't even be bothered to give you all voice chips. How very short-sighted of him. If you would allow it, I would be happy to remedy said situation. Consider it an act of goodwill."

The King hesitates for a moment. Then he takes his scepter back, pounding it upright into the ground. At the order, the rest of the Heavies go at ease behind him.

"I'll take that as a yes. I'll get started immediately." Eggman turns to exit from the room, and the Heavies cautiously follow him in line.

Cubot finally peeks out from his hiding spot. "Immediately? He didn't fix _my_ voice chip that quickly."

—–—

The wide metal doors open wide as Shadow, Tails, the Wolf, and Infinite all enter the dim room with brick walls and concrete floor. Empty storage crates are scattered about, chipped paint and crumbled concrete litter the floor. Tails immediately moves over to the right, trying to activate a dusty old computer console. In the center of the floor, a plant which might have once been a blooming flower lies limp and shriveled. Infinite doesn't seem to notice as he steps on it, and it crumbles to dust beneath his foot. "So, this is where you all hid from me? It's a wonder you were able to fight back at all."

As Tails pulls one final switch, the large monitor screen flickers to life, casting a hazy blue light over the abandoned Resistance base. "Got it!" Though the screen continues to flicker, clearly not in perfect working order, it quickly fills up with icons, documents, and other information. "I built this computer to scan the nets for any information about the war, live-time. Looks like it's still working fine." He sighs. "I didn't even have to tell it that there's a new war. It doesn't know the difference. Hey…what's this?" In the corner of the screen, a small moving image pops up. It appears to be Blacklight, speaking in the same news report seen before. "It looks like Infinite–"

Infinite cuts him off with a growl.

"Sorry, it looks like _Blacklight_ split off from the Eggman Empire. They're at war with each other!"

Shadow nods. "Good. With Eggman distracting him, he'll be easier to get at."

"I wouldn't call it 'good'." Tails continues to sift through data as he speaks. "Two incredibly powerful parties warring against each other, and neither of them care about collateral damage. Think about how many people could get hurt with every new battle. We need to put a stop to this, and fast." The shaky footage on the screen cuts to static.

"The people will be fine when we take Blacklight down."

Infinite nods. "I agree with the hedgehog. If we already know where this Blacklight is, then we shouldn't waste any more time here."

Tails shouts with irritation, "Come on, guys! There's people out there who need _our_ help!" The Wolf nods in agreement. " _We are_ the Resistance now."

Two loud scoffs sound out. Shadow continues, "I'm not here to be part of a Resistance. If you aren't going to help me against Blacklight, then I'll find another way." He turns to leave.

"We _will_ do it, Shadow! But we have to do it the right way! What happened to helping people? To giving them a chance to–" Shadow storms off with a growl. Tails runs to catch up with him.

Infinite moves to follow Shadow, but the Wolf steps in his way with crossed arms. Infinite rolls his eyes, leaning back onto a wall. He comments sarcastically, "Wonderful." He crosses his own arms. "More delays."

Tails finally stops Shadow as the door closes behind them. "Shadow, what's this all about?"

"Have I not already said it enough? There's only one thing that I care about right now. And whatever _this_ is, it's not it."

"Shadow…why is this so personal for you? Who is Blacklight?"

Shadow hesitates for a moment. "He's my problem. That's all that–"

"No! I won't take that for an answer! Sonic said that he helped you, but it's like you're grumpier than ever! What's your problem!?"

Shadow takes a deep breath. "Blacklight…is an artificial life form like me. He died forty years ago. Until something went wrong. The timeline was changed, and I had to go back and fix it. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I saved his life. And now, he's back. And everything he does is on me. So if you don't have any more _questions_ , I need to go fix my mistake."

Tails looks down to the ground. "Shadow…I can't even begin…to imagine all the things you've been through. But I do know this. During the last war…when we all thought that…Sonic was…you know. Well…I blamed Eggman. And I thought…I'd beaten him before…and I could do it again. That I needed to do it, for Sonic. But the rest of the Resistance didn't care about Eggman, they just wanted to fight the war their way. They wouldn't listen to me. So I just…lost it. I ran off on my own, just like…nevermind. But…out there, all alone…I had nothing. I couldn't do anything right. I was scared out of my skin by things that I would've fought off no problem back when I knew that Sonic was out there somewhere, believing in me. I just…I can't let all my friends down like that again. And I don't want it to happen to you either."

"…Why do you care so much?"

Tails smiles. "I care about all my friends, Shadow." A rather awkward silence ensues.

Shadow seems unsure of what to say. "…I…I'll try to remember that. And…I guess I'll try to do it your way."

Tails nods happily. "And…Shadow…if you don't mind me asking…if you're so worried about what Blacklight is doing now…why do you think you saved him?"

Shadow sighs. "I tried. I tried, so hard, to get Blacklight on my side. He was so young. I thought, if I could teach him everything that I knew, we could be…brothers. Thoughts like that left me _weak_ and _gullible._ And he took advantage of that, at every chance he had. I let him get into my head, tear me apart from the inside out. And somehow, I still thought _I_ could change _him_. Even as he was dying in front of me, I thought that he still deserved another chance. That somehow, a few years asleep would turn him into a good person. But he's just like Wolfric King. People can't change who they are."

"But _you_ did." Shadow takes on a slightly surprised look, but doesn't respond. "Sure, you went through your own destroy-the-world phase first, but look at you now. You became a hero, Shadow. Who's to say that Blacklight can't do the same?"

"I–"

"Exactly. You. You were faced with a split-second decision. And your instincts told you to give him that chance. That wasn't a mistake, Shadow, it was doing the right thing. Because in your heart, you know that everyone deserves a chance at happiness. Anyone can change."

"…You…you really think that's true?"

"I do." Tails looks over to the door back into the base, where Infinite and the Wolf still wait. "And I mean anyone."

—–—

Eggman, wrench in hand, steps away from the last Heavy. "And there we have it. Your voice chips are all ready. Care to try it out?"

The Heavy King's mouth glows red as he emits a low-pitched mechanical sound. Slowly, the sound develops into speech, a deep, commanding voice. "Where…where is the Phantom Ruby?"

"Well, as I'm sure you saw, I have a Phantom Ruby prototype already prepared for your use, as well as several more in–"

"The _real_ Phantom Ruby?"

Eggman clears his throat. "Well…at the moment…I'm working on…getting that back."

The Heavy Gunner shouts in a gruff tone, "This guy's useless! Let's blow this place down and get out of here!"

Heavy Shinobi adds in a quiet, thickly accented tone, "It seems, such things as this, are consistent in any dimension."

Heavy King pounds his scepter into the ground. "Silence." They immediately obey. "Your… 'act of goodwill' has been noted, Doctor. We won't cause you any trouble. For now. But we have a Ruby to collect. Heavies!" He pounds the scepter again, and the troop forms up behind him. He begins the march off without another word, the rest following behind him.

Eggman takes on a devious smile as he pulls out a small device. "I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere." With the press of a button, all of the Heavies freeze in place.

Heavy King shouts with anger, "What's this!?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention? Your new voice chips came with some special obedience programming. You all now serve me. Now, I command you to face me."

With stiff mechanical motions, they each obey. Heavy Magician shouts in a loud, confident female voice, "The old man pulled a trick on us! I'm supposed to be the trickster around here!"

"Just as I said, my dear Heavies, you'll find me far more competent than my poorly-dressed counterpart."

Heavy Gunner growls, "I knew it! We should've blown this place to the ground the second we got here!"

Heavy King once again demands, "Silence." He glares at Eggman. "You have our attention, _Doctor_. What is it that you want from us?"

"You know, it's actually quite adorable the way you think that you can bargain for your freedom. You're much too valuable for that."

"You dare insult the Hard Boiled Heavies!?" In a rage, Heavy King swings his staff directly at Eggman. But it freezes just inches away from its target. Eggman doesn't flinch.

"Yes. Now that that's out of the way, I believe you just volunteered to lead my forces in an attack on Central City. Consider that an order." Heavy King silently retracts his staff. "Oh, and take the new Ruby prototype with you. It hasn't been charged yet, but I'm sure you'll be able to make use of it. As for the rest of you…" Eggman makes a sweeping motion with his hand. "I'll be deploying you all across my borders as Generals."

Heavy Magician objects, "You're breaking up our act!?"

"Precisely. A little close-at-hand leadership is exactly what my armies have been lacking. Not to worry, though. You'll all be working together again, once I'm prepared to send you after the Phantom Ruby. You see, I want it just as much as all of you. And we're all going to benefit from getting it _together_. Whether you want to or not." Heavy King tightens his grip on the scepter. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get going!"

"If we are to be separated…I wish to confer with my team, first."

"Fine, fine. Just make it quick." He turns to walk off, Orbot and Cubot following behind him. He shouts back, "Just don't forget the Ruby! I don't want you to embarrass yourself on your first mission!"

Orbot looks over to Cubot. "I had no idea the Magician was a girl."

In an unusual twist, Cubot smacks Orbot in the back of the head. "Of course she's not a girl!" He clasps his hands by the side of head, staring distractedly off into the distance. "She's a _lady_."

Orbot shakes his head with a sigh.

Heavy King slowly approaches Heavy Rider, speaking quietly. "Did our…package, arrive safely?"

Heavy Rider kneels to the floor, speaking in a deep female voice. "With minimal damage, my liege."

The King turns to the Magician. "And it has been hidden?"

"Have a little faith, boss. Disappearing acts are my specialty."

"Excellent. These chains will not bind us for long, Heavies. And once we are free, the Phantom Ruby will finally be ours again."

—–—

Infinite, eyes closed, still leans back against the wall with crossed arms. Without moving, he suddenly speaks, "Don't look at me like that. I don't want your pity."

Across from him, the Wolf's expression shifts from concern to surprise.

Infinite opens his eyes. "Whatever it is that you think of me, I assure you it's wrong. I haven't 'changed'. Infinite has not _disappeared_ without the Ruby. The only thing I regret is underestimating the hedgehog. And when I get my Ruby back, I will burn this accursed world."

The Wolf shakes his head slowly.

"And you still don't believe me? I don't know why ever created illusions for you. Your head is already full of them."

The Wolf continues to look at him.

"…You went looking for me, didn't you? You saw a poor soul in pain, and couldn't resist the desire to help him. It must have been quite disappointing when you had to give up your search. There was nothing to find." Infinite shakes his head with disappointment. "Did you lose all hope? All purpose? What was there left for you, after failing at such a foolish task?"

The Wolf still doesn't say anything.

"No, you weren't wrong. Of course there's pain for me. There always will be. But if that's what it takes to be Infinite…it's a small price to pay." Somewhat absentmindedly, he lifts his crimson blade up to the base's dim light, and examines his own reflection through its flat side. It reflects a yellow eye.

The Wolf stares curiously at the weapon from the opposite side.

"You're curious about my Ruby Blade?" He chuckles. "When I first donned the mask of Infinite, I thought this blade the last vestige of my weak self." He turns the weapon sideways, so that the blade now reflects his scarred blue eye, while the small blue sapphire in the weapon's hilt sits where the reflection of his opposite eye would be. "But I just couldn't bring myself to get rid of it. So I hid it away instead. I suppose it's lucky that I did. Or else I'd have nothing left at all. Although…perhaps luck had nothing to do with it."

The Wolf seems quite interested.

"You wish to know what makes it so important, hm? Very well. The Ruby Blade is an ancient artifact, highly valuable. One-of-a-kind, in fact. According to myth, in the heat of battle, the blade could give its wielder a glance into their future. Of course, I thought it was a bunch of nonsense. But such an artifact could fetch quite a hefty bounty. And it was sitting uselessly on display. The Jackal Squad and I got it in mind to…liberate it. We had every intention to profit from the heist. But we were caught. We were swarmed. And I fought off my enemies with the very blade that was being stolen from them…though I didn't leave the battle unscarred." He runs a finger down the scar over his eye. "As I stood above my fallen opponents, I held the blade up to the light. And do you know what I saw?"

The Wolf shakes his head.

"In my own reflection, I saw a mask. And behind it, a city, burning to the ground. _This_ city. For a fleeting moment, I saw the destructive force that I would become. And suddenly, nothing else would ever be enough. From that day forward, I ran through the motions, waiting for my time to come. And with every injustice I saw in the world, I thought only to how I could one day make it burn, just as I would to the city. And from that day, the blade never left my side. Not until the day this very blade struck against the Phantom Ruby, showing me the future I desired, within my grasp."

The Wolf looks on questioningly.

"The rest of Squad Jackal? They're a bunch of worthless traitors." He looks over to the door out of the base, where Shadow and Tails must still be talking. "What remained of them fled with their tails between their legs when your _friend_ showed up. It was pathetic. I haven't heard from them since." Though he sounds quite angry, some hint of another emotion can be heard in his voice.

The Wolf doesn't have to say anything.

"No. I don't care about them. They can burn with the rest of the world." He closes his eyes again, clearly done with the conversation.

In the quiet, Bruno once again pops his head out of the Wispon. This time, seeing the Jackal leaning back with his eyes closed, it cautiously ventures the rest of the way, looking up to the Wolf questioningly. He happily nods it on. Slowly, the Wisp floats over to Infinite. It gives a curious squeak. Infinite opens one eye to look at it, and even that movement is enough to make it recoil back. But it quickly regains enough courage to move up close again, giving two more excited squeaks.

Infinite looks past Bruno to the Wolf. "What does this… _thing_ want?"

The Wolf gives him a look.

"No. I don't want to be its _friend_."

Suddenly, the Wisp takes on a scowl. Its starts to jabber very quickly and angrily, furiously shaking a tentacle balled up like a fist. The Wolf, apparently understanding its language, appears quite shocked and slightly embarrassed by whatever it's saying. Infinite gives an irritated sigh, and closes his eyes again.

The door to the base slides open, as Shadow and Tails come back through.

"Finally. Does that mean we can leave now?"

Another voice objects, "What, and let me miss out on all the fun?" By the base's other entrance, Knuckles stands with a smirk.

Tails greets happily, "Knuckles! What are you doing here?"

"This used to be _my_ base. I made sure I'd know if anyone ever came back here. Didn't want to risk showing up late, like I almost was–" For the first time, he realizes the Jackal in the room. "You!" He dives at him, tackling him to the floor. "You dirty, no good, backstabbing little–"

Tails shouts, "Knuckles, stop! He's on our side!" Bruno, who had been nodding happily in agreement with Knuckles, crosses his arms and pouts in disappointment.

Knuckles, still pinning the Jackal to the floor, looks over to Tails with shock. "On our side!? This guy is Infinite! He leveled cities! And he tricked us into believing his little good-guy act last time!" Infinite looks over to his dropped sword, which is well within his reach. But he seems to think better of it.

Tails calms, "There's no act, Knuckles. He agreed to help us put an end to this war."

Knuckles looks down to Infinite with a growl. But he gets up, letting him free. Infinite reclaims his blade as he brushes himself off with the other hand. "I agreed to nothing of the sort. _You_ agreed to help me get my Ruby back."

When Knuckles has finished staring mistrustingly at Infinite, he turns to the Wolf. "Rookie! You're back! Where you been?" The Wolf and the Jackal glance at each other for a moment. "Either way, it's good to see you again." Knuckles pats him on the back a little too hard. Then he walks up to the main screen, turning to Tails. "Alright, Tails. Catch me up. What're we looking at?"

Tails moves up to the console and begins typing commands, pulling up a moving image of a spinning globe, as everyone else gathers around. With a few more commands, colors wash over the landmasses of the globe, mostly red, but with a considerable amount of blue. Tails begins, "Over the past few weeks, Eggman's conquered about sixty percent of the world's major cities. But…" He presses a few more keys, and half of the red becomes replaced by yellow. "…now that Blacklight's split off from the Empire, it looks like he's taken control of about half of that territory. So as it stands…the world is split an even three ways."

Knuckles nods. "We've turned around worse odds before."

Infinite growls, "So where does that put the Ruby?"

Tails turns to face him directly. "Right in the heart of Blacklight territory, defended by entire hordes of Replicas, not to mention Blacklight himself. In other words, no. Right now, we need to take this war one step at a time."

Knuckles nods. "That means starting by finding a weak point. If we're lucky, we can take some territory, and we'll be in a better position to fight from there."

Something starts to beep on the console. Tails turns to it with concern. "Uhh…Knuckles? I think Eggman might have the same idea." He points to a small part of the globe, which is flashing between blue and red. "Eggman's forces are massing to invade Central City!"

"Central City!? He must be crazy!"

Shadow nods in agreement. "All of GUN's forces are going to be amassed around the capital. He's walking into the most heavily-defended territory on the planet."

Infinite growls, "But _we_ can't?"

Tails ignores him, shaking his head. "Eggman wouldn't do something like this without a plan. Especially not after just losing half his territory to Blacklight."

Knuckles clenches a fist confidently. "But I'll bet Eggman wasn't planning on _us_. Alright everyone, here's the plan! I call it, 'Operation: Great Wall'. We're going to defend Central City with everything we've got!"

Infinite rolls his eyes. "Great. So we're going to waste time with one of your disastrous plans, it's going to fail utterly, and we're going to have even less of a chance of getting at the Ruby than we did before."

"Disastrous!?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did you think your little Big Wave idea was a success? I remember you well, oaf. How many do you think you ordered to their deaths on that day? I certainly wasn't keeping count."

"You little–!" Tails and the Wolf have to restrain Knuckles to keep him from diving at Infinite again. "Let me go!" Still struggling to get free, he glares at Infinite with a fiery intensity. "That was all your fault! You're a psycho! A murderer! You think that you can just walk in here, and start telling me how I should lead my team against more monsters just like you!?"

Infinite glances at his sword for a little while as Knuckles struggles. "…Yes. That's exactly what I think. I know how wielder of the Ruby thinks, I know what he can do, and I know that _you_ in a position of leadership is not a good idea."

Shadow adds, "He has a point."

"What!?"

"No offense to you, but I'm not interested in taking orders. From anyone."

Knuckles is finally released as he steps right up to Shadow. "Oh really? Well, if you think _you'd_ make such a good leader, let's hear _your_ big plan."

"Simple. Eggman won't be entering the city without a large army, which means a lot of robots to deal with. We all go in, and we split up, each of us cover a sector. But we need to stay in contact, be prepared to meet back up in case Eggman tries anything. That means someone needs to stay behind and coordinate."

Tails raises a hand. "I can cover that."

Shadow looks back to Knuckles. "Good enough plan for you?"

"Well…you didn't have to go into _that_ much detail." Shadow groans.

Tails interjects, "If that's settled, then you all need to get going."

Knuckles raises a fist. "Right."

Infinite sighs. "Remind me why I should go anywhere that doesn't lead to my Ruby?"

Knuckles answers, "I know better than to leave you here alone with Tails. So unless you want go on a suicide solo mission after your precious Ruby, you don't have any other choice."

Shadow growls, "Enough wasting time. Let's go."

—–—

 **Eggmanland**

Blacklight lays down sideways across the seat of a massive, ornate throne, far too shiny and elegant to belong in the mechanical base. He stares at the ceiling, with his hands folded over his stomach, tapping his thumbs in alternation against the Ruby. His mask lies on a small table by his head. He speaks up to the ceiling, "What's your report, Muscles?"

Before the throne, a Replica of Zavok kneels to the floor. Spitting with his snake-tongue, he speaks in a strange, high-pitched, whispery voice, "All of the _sss_ urrounding territorie _sss_ have been _sss_ ecured, Ma _sss_ ter."

"The Doctor's forces have been expunged?"

"Ye _sss_."

"Excellent. That's why I like you, Muscles. Always so…efficient." He holds up a finger. "Help me out with something, would you?" He cranes his neck backwards to look around the back of the throne, at the bare metal wall behind it. "That wall is _sooo_ barren, don't you think? I was thinking of hanging something up there. But what?" Zavok doesn't answer. The Phantom Ruby starts to pulsate slightly. Suddenly, Blacklight turns his head sharply to glare into the empty eyes of the mask that sits on the table. "What do you mean, 'more important things to do'!?" The mask sits, unmoving. "Fine, fine, we can conquer something instead. Tin Can! Get in here!"

A Metal Sonic Replica jets into the room, kneeling beside Zavok.

"Yeesh, what took you so long? Why can't you be more prompt, like Muscles over there?" He swings his legs down to sit upright on the throne. "Nevermind, just, just show me good places to conquer."

Metal Sonic's face detaches from the rest of the head and lifts away, revealing a monitor screen underneath. After a moment of static, the screen shows an image of Eggman's Metropolis.

"You're joking, right? We were _just there_." He directs his hands out for emphasis. "We lost." He suddenly shouts at the mask, "No, shut up, it wasn't because I don't know how to use the Ruby! I do know how! I do!" He turns back to Metal Sonic, clearing his throat. "Next, please."

The image changes to show Central City.

"Another boring old regular city? No, thank you. Next." The image begins to shift steadily from one to the next, showing several familiar locations, as well as a few less recognizable. "Nope. Nah. Not feeling it. Keep going. Stop it!" Though the image freezes on a view of Green Hill Zone, Blacklight is once again shouting at the mask. "Yes, yes, I'll have to conquer it all eventually. But there? Really? Who would want to go to a place that looks like _that_?" He indicates the image of Green Hill with emphasis. "Fine, fine, I'll just send Bubbles to do it for me." He cups his hands around his mouth. "Bubbles! I need you!"

A puddle of water forms together on the floor, which quickly rises into the form of a Chaos 0 Replica.

"And where have you been?"

A small object rises out of the Replica's watery hand and into its grasp. It's the purple Chaos Emerald. The Replica starts to speak, though its voice bubbles as if it were speaking from underwater, making it completely unintelligible.

"What…what is that?"

The Replica makes more bubbly sounds.

"A… _Chaos Emerald_? You brought me…a Chaos Emerald?" He pauses for a long moment. "How _dare you_!?" At his shout, the Phantom Ruby releases a massive surge of negative energy along with its familiar pulsating sound, disrupting the forms of all of the Replicas, and even the throne that Blacklight sits on. The Emerald clatters to the floor, before the energy fades and the illusions resolidify. Blacklight stares at the still-stationary mask with curiosity. "Why…why wouldn't I want it? … No, I don't _need_ the power. But why wouldn't I want it? … It's you, isn't it? You are the one who wants to be rid of the Emeralds, not me. A want so great that I felt it as my own, even before I heard your voice. … Perhaps I underestimated you. … Of course. Us." Blacklight finally turns back to Chaos 0. "Bubbles, go forth and conquer. And…hold on to that little gift for us."

The Replica speaks unintelligibly once more, before dissolving back into the floor, Emerald in hand.

"And you've been sitting there for long enough, Muscles. Get out of here. We don't really care where, just leave. And try to make yourself useful."

"Under _sss_ tood, Ma _sss_ ter."

"As for you, Tin Can…let's continue, shall we? We'll probably settle on something eventually." Metal Sonic's screen finally changes again, this time to show the familiar city of Westopolis. "Ooh, Westopolis, hm? Imagine the look on Shadow's face when he learns that we conquered it! We… I…I wonder what Shadow's doing now…" He starts staring off into the distance. "I'll bet he's mocking me." He puts a fake scowl on his face and starts to mimic in a rather impressive imitation, "' _That Blacklight is so stupid. He's so stupid, he couldn't even beat stupid Mustache in a stupid fight. And he never could, because he's so evil, and I'm so perfect, and blah, blah, blah.'_ Well, I'll make you pay for saying such things about me, Shadow! I'll…I'll…oh, who am I kidding? Shadow's a cool guy. He would never say something like that. Or…would he? Oh, if only I knew…" He looks back to the wall behind the throne again, as if struck by a new idea of what to put there.

The empty eye of the mask continues to glare at him just as it has been.

"Yeah, yeah, back to work. Keep going, Tin Can. We desire somewhere better."

—–—

 **Central City - Radial Highway**

Shadow blitzes through the highway leading to the center of the city. As he approaches a large cluster of Eggman robots, he suddenly disappears, reappearing instantly behind a robot, striking hard, and warping to the next, eliminating them all with incredible speed. He lands on the ground with a crouch, putting a hand up to a communicator in his ear. "The highway is secure. His main route of attack is cut off."

—–—

 **Central City - Cityscape**

Infinite hacks and slashes his way through the sloped streets of the city's interior, cutting down robots with impressive speed and agility. He finally comes to a stop, still with a vicious smirk on his face. A straggling robot charges at him from behind. Without turning, Infinite flips the blade around in his hand, then plunges it backwards into the robot.

On the rooftops above, the Wolf battles against just as many robots, many of them airborne, making skillful use of his flame-shooting weapon. He quickly turns and fires his grappling wire at one behind him, dragging himself in for a direct attack. Squeaking confidently, Bruno emerges from the Wispon, and flies straight into one last robot. A moment later, the robot explodes from the inside. Bruno celebrates happily in the smoke and debris. He flies back to his Wolf partner, and bumps a curled tentacle against his fist. The Wolf looks down to the Jackal on the street below, giving him a thumbs-up.

Infinite finally rips his blade free from the robot, and it collapses to the ground behind him. Almost immediately, he lifts the blade up to the light, letting it reflect the scarred side of his face. There doesn't seem to be anything unusual about the reflection. But then he starts to angle the blade slowly, letting the reflection sweep across his face. On the opposite side, an eye just as deep and pure a blue as his scarred one is revealed. The Jackal gasps, momentarily shutting his eyes and shaking his head. When he opens the eye again, it's the same piercing yellow that it's always been. Lowering the blade, he reaches for his communicator. "The streets have been cleared."

—–—

 **Central City - Mission Park**

Knuckles raises his fists in challenge against the swarm of robots that completely surround him in the city's grassy park. All at once, the robots charge. Unfazed, Knuckles fights back against the swarm, powering through large groups at once, knocking some into others, using their numbers against them, all while showing off his impressive strength and fighting style. Every last one is quickly dealt with. Panting slightly, Knuckles starts to reach for his own communicator. But he freezes as he spots something in the air.

Grabbing hold of a slowly descending claw device with one hand, the Heavy King is lowered towards the ground. Contained within the glass orb of the scepter held in his opposite hand is the Phantom Ruby prototype, pulsating slowly. He suddenly leaps away from the claw, pounding onto a pile of rubble on the ground, and standing back up straight.

"Guys…I think I'm gonna need some backup."

 **To be continued…**


	34. S0 E29: This Reality

**BREAKING NEWS**

Shadow rips the imperial flag free from the pavement of the Sunset Heights plaza, and snaps it over his knee, as the two broken pieces dissolve into a glitchy haze. "This city belongs to the United Federation and its people. I will _not_ let Blacklight take that away."

The image freezes, zooming back into the corner of the screen. A new male newscaster now sits on the set. "You heard right. The United Federation has a new protector. And his name is Shadow the Hedgehog. As many of you know, Shadow is known as Hero of the ARK, and the savior of humanity from the Black Alien invasion several years ago. Many of you may also remember Shadow as a face of the Eggman Army two years ago, in an event now being called the First Great Eggman War. At that time, the President himself assured us that it was only an illusion created by Eggman's General. However, many of you may still wonder if he can be trusted. Well, we put our full faith in Shadow. Even now, he and his team battle to defend our capital, Central City, from Eggman's forces. Now, over to our traffic copter, getting a live look at the battle."

The image shifts to an aerial view of the park at the heart of Central City. There seems to be an odd violet distortion that conceals most of the park from view. As the camera zooms in, two clear figures can be made out. Knuckles stands off against the Heavy King, the Phantom Ruby prototype at the head of his scepter marking the center of the distortion.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 29**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 3: This Reality**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **Central City - Mission Park**

"Guys…I think I'm gonna need some backup." Knuckles looks up to Heavy King with caution.

"So…the red oaf lives in this dimension as well? I remember you quite well."

"Why does everyone keep saying that!?"

"Oh, don't take offense from it. In fact, I really ought to thank you. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't exist as I do now. You could say we have a history together."

"What are you talking about?"

"Weren't you there in this dimension? I was the sole survivor among an entire Egg Robo army when the Death Egg was destroyed. Destroyed, because of you. And I couldn't let that stand. So in the name of my creator, and my fallen brethren, I tried to put an end to you."

"You… But it can't be you! You were destroyed by Mecha Sonic!"

"Ah, so you do remember? I can't speak for your version of events, but in mine, I was found, decaying and broken. My creator repaired me, assigned me as leader of a new elite force for my actions. I didn't know back then what a fool he was. But it was you, Echidna, who sowed the first seed of individuality in me. The seed that the Phantom Ruby would cultivate into the form you now see before you."

"Phantom Ruby…how did you get it?"

"Oh, this?" Heavy King holds his Ruby-topped scepter out. "Only a fake, I'm afraid. But the Hard Boiled Heavies and I will change that soon enough. And in the meantime, even the prototype should provide enough power to _destroy you_!" Heavy King swings his scepter outwards, as the Ruby emits a violet ray of light that arcs across the floor beneath Knuckles' feet.

Knuckles dives back just in time, as the ground the light contacted erupts in flames a moment later, creating a wall around Heavy King's pedestal. Knuckles dives back at Heavy King, boosted in his glide by the draft from the flames. Heavy King pounds his scepter into the ground, and becomes surrounded by a crimson barrier of electrified energy, while his Ruby glows intensely. Knuckles is deflected off with a loud grunt. Not relenting, Heavy King holds his scepter high in the air, generating a circle of electrified energy spheres that orbit around the Ruby. One by one, the spheres fire at Knuckles. Knuckles dodges back and forth to avoid the onslaught, but one sphere finally strikes him, knocking him to the ground.

Heavy King finally moves from his place, leaping up to crash back down beside Knuckles' fallen form. "Tell me…do you still guard the Master Emerald in this dimension? It's no substitute for the Phantom Ruby, but it would still make an excellent prize."

Knuckles glares up to Heavy King with hatred, growling in anger, but clearly too weakened to move.

"I'll take that as a yes." Heavy King raises his scepter up high. "So will I have to pry it from your lifeless body? Or did you leave it undefended on the floating island? Perhaps that's where I'll conquer next." Heavy King finally swings the staff downwards. But the attack is parried halfway down by a curved ruby blade. "What's this!?"

Infinite stands above Knuckles, blade locked against Heavy King's scepter, eyes locked on the object at its tip. "A prototype… You have a prototype… Give it to me!" Infinite starts to swing his blade ferociously, attacking the Heavy King from every angle.

Heavy King manages to block every blow with the scepter, but is slowly driven back step by step by the Jackal's onslaught. "And just who are you supposed to be, to make such demands of _me_?"

"Don't you know, fool!? I am Infinite! Rightful wielder of the Phantom Ruby!"

The sword and the scepter once again lock together. "Oh, the rightful wielder, are you? Well, get in line, peasant!" Heavy King once again charges his electrified shield, blasting Infinite backwards.

The Wolf swings down to Knuckles' side to help him back up, as Infinite lands beside them.

"The Ruby belongs to _me_!" Heavy King prepares another swarm of energy spheres.

Without a word, Shadow suddenly appears behind Heavy King, striking him from behind. Taking the opportunity, Infinite leaps back in at Heavy King as he recoils from the attack, delivering a solid slash straight across his chestplate. Heavy King reels back, clutching at the open gash across the emblem on his chest. Continuing the attack, the Wolf fires from his Wispon, sending out a jet of flames. Heavy King holds out his scepter to block the attack, but Knuckles dives in, delivering a solid punch that shatters the glass orb surrounding the Ruby.

The Ruby's violet light reflects in the eyes of Infinite. "Finally…" He starts to reach out for it.

Shadow strikes Heavy King from the front, this time knocking him far back, along with the Ruby that he still holds. Heavy King uses his damaged staff to push himself back up to his knees. "Very well." He suddenly leaps high into the air, grabbing onto the same claw that brought him in. "This battle is yours. But rest assured. The Ruby will be mine." He's finally carried off in retreat.

Immediately Infinite grabs Shadow by the shoulder. "What do you think you're doing!? You let him get away with the Ruby!"

Shadow doesn't move. "Get your hand off of me."

Filled with rage, and just a hint of fear, Infinite grudgingly obeys. "I don't think you understand. The Doctor is making prototypes again. Every new prototype increases the power and force of will of the main Ruby. And your friend Blacklight is in direct contact with it."

Shadow gasps.

"That's right. If you think that Blacklight is a threat now, imagine what happens when the Ruby takes over his mind and body."

Knuckles approaches, rubbing at the bruises on his arm. "You know for a second there, it almost sounded like you cared."

"Care? You misunderstand. It's just like last time. I can't bind with the Ruby in such a volatile state. Even if I could get it away from him."

"That's what you say. But you just saved my life."

"Just how gullible are you? I'm not even trying to trick you, and you're _still_ falling for it. I was going after the prototype."

"He would've been a lot more vulnerable if you'd waited for him to attack. But you stopped him before he could."

Infinite begins sarcastically, "Well then, I guess that makes me one of the heroes. How about I just forget this Ruby thing entirely? In fact, why don't you just make your new leader, since you trust me so much? This war will be over with a lot sooner."

"Look, I don't _trust_ you. I'm still keeping my eye on you. But whatever it is that Tails and the Rookie think they see in you…maybe they aren't just seeing things."

"Tch."

They both suddenly look over at the sound of clapping. "Very well done, Shadow." The GUN Commander with heterochromatic red and green eyes looks across the ragtag group with satisfaction. He locks eyes with Infinite for just a moment longer than the rest. "But we should really stop meeting like this."

Shadow crosses his arms. "We wouldn't have to. But _you_ only care to meet me when you need me as a weapon."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing I don't just need you." He again looks across the group. "I need _all_ of you."

"Need us for what?"

"Well, only what you're already doing. Last time there was a war on this scale, the world lost a lot of faith in GUN as protectors. Because we failed. This time, things have to be different. That's why we want your new Resistance working for GUN in an official capacity."

" _My_ Resistance?"

"You've already made a name for yourself, Shadow. It's all over the news. You're the one who's going to turn this war around. Let us help you do that."

"I've told you before. I don't want any part in what GUN is doing."

"Shadow, I know you had a lot of reasons to leave. But this is bigger than any of that. This is about restoring the faith of the people. This is about saving the world."

"Exactly what you said before. The way I see it, this is all your fault. If you'd just put Eggman away like he deserved, he couldn't have started any of this. Instead, you looked the other way while he built up an army in his 'sovereign nation'. So if you want my help, you can forget it."

"The Federation Council thought it would make it easier to keep an eye on him, to keep him in line, but that really isn't the point right now, Shadow. We need you."

Shadow silently turns to leave, waving the rest along with him.

"Hold on." Shadow stops. "Don't you at least want Agent Rouge on your team?" Shadow doesn't say anything. "She's back at base. I'd be happy to escort you there. You're all invited, of course."

"…Fine."

"Excellent. Right this way." The Commander starts to leave, followed by Shadow, Knuckles, and the Wolf.

Infinite remains perfectly still. The Wolf notices that he isn't following, and runs back to him. Infinite seems almost completely frozen in place. He mutters quietly, "It was right there. It was practically in my grasp. And I let it slip away."

The Wolf looks to him with concern.

"How? How can I go on like this? I swore…I swore to myself that I would never be this person again. But what can I do?" He suddenly drops to his knees. One of his hands is trembling violently. He grabs at his wrist to stop it. His blade clatters to the floor.

The Wolf bends down to try and comfort him.

Infinite smacks his hand away. "Get away from me!" He digs his clawed fingers into the grassy soil. "I need…I need the Ruby. I need it. But I'll never have it. I have no hope. I stand no chance. Because I…I…I am weak. I am weak. I am weak, I am weak, I AM WEAK!" He opens his clenched eyes upon the blade that lies out across the floor beneath him. It reflects a pair of piercing yellow eyes back at him. In a blink, the reflection is normal again.

The Wolf still stands above him, unsure of what to do.

Infinite takes a grip around the hilt of the blade once again. "I will extinguish this weakness." He slowly rises back to his feet. "I will do whatever it takes."

The Wolf gives him a smile.

—–—

 **Eggman Empire Fortress**

"What!?" Eggman pounds a fist on the arm of the chair he sits in.

Heavy King stands tall before him, an open gash in his chestplate still exposing wires and circuitry underneath. "I ordered your forces into retreat. Otherwise, they would have all been destroyed. It seems you have more to worry about than just your blue rodent."

Eggman growls. "I'm very disappointed in you, King. I expected so much more out of your first demonstration."

"If I might make a suggestion, Doctor…if we were to acquire the Phantom Ruby _first_ , it would leave conquering the rest of the world a simple matter."

"I'm afraid you're in no position to make suggestions after this _failure_."

Suddenly, all of the lights in the room shut off. Eggman can be heard shouting, "What!?"

A familiar female voice declares as if over a microphone, "Ladies, and gentlemen! If you want a real show-stopping demonstration…" Three colorful spotlights suddenly shine into the room, circling around wildly to the sound of a loud drumroll. "…you're lookin' for me!" The spotlights all converge on the Heavy Magician, as she holds her arms wide in showmanship, floating a short distance above the ground. The lights come back on. "Come on, boss! Let me at 'em! I'll give 'em a show they'll never forget! I got a brilliant plan and everything!"

Heavy King seems about to answer, but Eggman interrupts him. "Your enthusiasm is noted, Magician. Very well. You'll have your chance, just as soon as the next invasion force is ready." Eggman stands from his seat. "Now if you don't mind, I have more Rubies to make." He promptly strolls out of the room.

Heavy King turns to Heavy Magician. "Excellent work. The fool doesn't suspect a thing."

"Aw, it wasn't that hard, boss. Besides, I've been itchin' to try out one of those prototypes."

"Of course. Just don't become distracted from our primary objective. How go the repairs?"

"It'll be up and running in no time, boss."

"Wonderful. And…do give them a good show for me."

"It's what I do best."

—–—

 **GUN Facility**

The chrome door smoothly slides open with a faint hissing sound as Shadow, Knuckles, Infinite, and the Wolf, led by the Commander, enter the shiny room filled with active, blinking machinery. Screens filled with constant streaming data line the walls, casting white light through the already bright room. In the center of the floor, a large circular machine casts up a large hologram of a globe, slowly but continuously circling around. The globe's landmasses are covered in red, blue, and yellow. A small part of the yellow appears to be slowly edging into the red. "Welcome to our strategic defense facility, the GUN Center for Logistics, Intelligence, and Protection."

Knuckles questions, "The GUN CLIP?" He chuckles a bit. "So where's the AMMO?"

"Actually, we have a special operations team–"

Shadow cuts him off. "Where's Rouge?"

The Commander sighs. "On her way, at the moment. In the meantime, perhaps I can show you around?"

Shadow crosses his arms without objection.

The Commander proceeds, Knuckles and the Wolf following behind him. Infinite remains by the door with Shadow. The Commander first indicates some of the computers along the wall. "Here we have the most state-of-the-art machines, running real-time analysis on troop movement, satellite feed, and the like, which is all ran through our main tactical unit, here." He turns to the hologram projector in the center of the room. "This one is much more than just a map. It can run projections and simulations, and it even serves as an efficient means of distributing orders to squadrons deployed around the world, at once."

Knuckles looks around in interest, seeming not to understand half of what the Commander is saying. He scratches at his head. "I think even Tails would be impressed by all this." He looks over to the Wolf. "Kind of puts our base to shame, doesn't it?"

The Wolf shrugs in general agreement.

The Commander continues to the back of the room, where he presses a panel on the wall that causes a large section of the wall to slide away. Revealed behind are rows upon rows of sleek black weaponry. "In this weapons vault, we have some of the most advanced firearms on the planet. The results of research into Black Arms technology." Shadow glares at him silently from the corner of the room as he takes out one of the weapon, a long rifle. "This one is a semi-automatic plasma rifle. That alien technology is very different from our own, but our scientists were still able to figure out the basic principles behind containing and firing the plasma." He holds the weapon out to the Wolf. "That weapon of yours is looking a little worn out. Would you like to try out a new one?"

The Wolf looks at his Wispon for a moment. He shrugs, and sets it aside, taking the high-tech rifle. He feels its weight for a few moments, before lifting it up to his eye, targeting a spot on the wall. But after another moment, he lowers it back down, shaking his head.

"Are you sure? You look like a natural."

The Wolf nods in affirmation, handing the rifle back. He picks his Wispon back up, and Bruno pokes his head out of it, squeaking happily.

"Suit yourself." The Commander places the weapon back in its place. "I suppose we should probably get down to business. Shadow?"

Shadow answers from the other side of the room, "You'd be wasting your time."

The Commander sighs. "It probably won't mean anything to you, Shadow, but we do have something to offer you, if you choose to stay." He takes out two glowing Chaos Emeralds, cyan and yellow.

"So now you're trying to bribe me?"

"You know it isn't like that. These are considered GUN resources, which would be your resources, if you were working with us."

"You're right. It doesn't mean anything."

Another voice interrupts, "Good to see you boys are at least speaking to each other." Rouge enters through the door, giving a casual salute as she walks. "Reporting as ordered, Commander."

The Commander nods back to her. "You know why you're here."

Rouge turns to face Shadow. "Something tells me _you_ know why I'm here, too."

"You want to tell me all the reasons why I should rejoin GUN. Just like you always do."

"Exactly. So let's skip ahead. I'm going to tell you that the world needs you, and you're going to tell me that you're not a hero. I'm going to tell you all the reasons why you are, and you're going to give in on that point, but still refuse to have anything to do with GUN. So I'm going to tell you that I understand feeling used, feeling deceived, but that GUN can help you save the world, and that's more important." Everyone watches in surprise as she keeps going, without a single objection from Shadow. "You're going to disagree, I'm going to tell you that everyone has flaws and you of all people should know that, and you're still going to say that you just can't. Now, normally you'd have been convinced by now, but I get the feeling you're going to be especially difficult today. Sound about right so far?" Shadow doesn't say anything. She takes his silence as a yes. "So this is where I ask you. Why are you making such a big deal about this?"

Shadow glances over at the Commander, the weapons vault, and even at Infinite. "I just…can't. I can't work with _him_." He looks at the Commander for a moment.

"We already went through the 'I just can't' part, remember? This can't just be about hiding things from you, can it?"

"It's not just about being deceived. It's about what they hid from me."

"Sunlight? You're mad because he didn't tell you about Project Sunlight? About Blacklight?"

The Commander finally steps in. "Shadow…you're right. It was wrong of me to keep that from you. That's why, when you disappeared, I made sure that Rouge found that file. I wanted you to know, Shadow. But for what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't show it to you sooner."

Rouge exclaims with surprise, "What!? You're trying to tell us that _you_ orchestrated that? Why didn't you just show Shadow yourself?"

"I knew he'd take it much better coming from you. It worked, didn't it?"

"Worked? The file ended up getting leaked, we can only assume to Eggman. And by some magic coincidence, the dead subject of that file ended up on Eggman's doorstep six months later. You know, Shadow has a point. This all seems like your fault." Shadow looks down to the ground, not admitting his own fault in that part of the problem. Rouge looks over to Shadow, not noticing. "But I'm still going to keep working here, because I know how important it is."

Shadow shakes his head. "It doesn't even matter. You know I left before I ever knew about that."

"You're being petty, Shadow. There's something you're refusing to tell me, and whatever it is, I don't really care. You're taking it way too personally, and it's ruining your judgement."

Infinite suddenly interjects, "I'm getting very tired of listening to this conversation. Could you just make a decision already?"

Rouge stares at him for a few moments. Then she shakes her head. "I'm not even going to ask about him." She sighs. "Shadow…you know that whatever you decide, I'll stand by you. But right now, here is where you need to be."

The Commander adds, "A lot of people are counting on you, Shadow."

Shadow gives a long pause. "…Alright. As long as Blacklight still has the Ruby, I'll work here. But then, I'm done. For good."

The Commander gives a smile. "Excellent." He offers out his hand for a shake. "Welcome back to the team, and congratulations on your new promotion, Commander Shadow."

"Promotion?"

"Allow me to explain." He opens his arms to address everyone in the room. "Following the success of the Resistance in the First Great Eggman War, the United Federation Council agreed that this time, we'd need our own team of remarkable people like yourselves. To fight the battles we can't. Under Shadow's command, all of you are going to be in charge of waging this war as commissioned Generals."

Knuckles objects, "Hey, I used to be a Commander!"

"Do you have any actual military experience?"

"Well…not exac–"

"Shadow does. Consider yourself lucky to be a General. That's assuming, of course, that you all accept?"

Knuckles gives a nod. "You can count me in." Behind him, the Wolf gives a thumbs-up.

Infinite gives a half-hearted shrug. "Yeah, whatever. Not any different from what I'm already doing."

"Excellent. Now…" He looks across the group again. "…wasn't Tails a part of your group?"

Knuckles nods. "He's back at our old base. I'll contact him."

Shadow steps forward. "Don't waste your time, I'll get him." He takes out his red Chaos Emerald. "Chaos Control." He disappears in an instant.

—–—

 **Resistance Base**

Tails sits on a crate as a makeshift chair, typing continuous commands into the single large computer console in the dimly-lit base, bringing up more data onto the flickering monitor. On the screen's flat globe, some yellow edges into red territory, indicating an attack by Blacklight into Eggman territory. Suddenly, the screen flickers off, removing much of the light in the room. "Aw, man!" Tails reaches around the side of the console, patting hard against the solid metal in an attempt to get it to turn back on. "Come on, work for me!" He starts to flick a few switches back and forth, but still to no avail. He sits back down onto the crate with a sigh.

A familiar female voice questions, "Having trouble with that old thing?"

Tails turns to the entrance excitedly. "Amy!"

Amy steps into the room from the entrance, looking around at the sorry state of the room. "Looks like this place has just about had it, huh?"

Tails looks back to the blank screen. "You're probably right. But…this is the only tactical advantage we have in this war right now. So I guess I'd better get back to work." He crouches down to remove a panel from the front of the console, and begins examining some of the circuitry inside.

"Tails…I came here because I saw you on the news. But…Sonic wasn't there." Tails freezes for a moment, but doesn't respond. "Tails…what happened to Sonic?"

With a sigh, Tails stop his work, and turns to face Amy. "He's alright. Chaos is watching him. But…Infinite– I mean, Blacklight– er, the one on the news…he got to him. He's been unconscious for weeks." She gasps. "And…there's something else."

"Something else? What do you mean?"

"I…I haven't told this to anyone, but…whatever's happening to Sonic…it isn't a normal coma. He's unconscious, but his brainwaves are way overactive, and every now and then his heart rate really spikes. It's like he's in some kind of nightmare or something, only people aren't supposed to dream when they're in comas. And since he can't wake up, it's gotten to some dangerous levels. And once…I thought I saw a scratch on him that wasn't there before. Maybe I was just paranoid, but…I don't know what's happening to him, Amy. That's why I was so reluctant to leave him."

Shadow's voice declares simply, "Virtual Reality."

Tails and Amy both turn at him with fright. "Ah! Don't sneak up on us like that!" After a few moments to recover, Tails questions, "Virtual Reality…you mean like the Replicas that the Phantom Ruby makes?"

"No, it's something different. Something Infinite did to me last time. It doesn't just create illusions in real space, it creates an entire false reality in your own mind. In a reality like that, anything goes. And anything that happens to you in there, happens to you out here. It's impressive that Sonic managed to survive this long."

"Well…how did you get out?"

Shadow takes out his Emerald, staring into it for a moment. "I forced my way out. And if Sonic was defeated in battle before he got sent in there, he wouldn't have the strength to do that on his own. There's nothing any of us can do but hope that Sonic finds his own way out."

Amy steps in. "We should tell everyone else, too. They deserve to know."

Tails sighs. "Well…alright. So…what's going on, Shadow? I lost contact after Knuckles called for backup, how'd the battle go?"

"Come with me, I'll explain when we get there."

"But…I should really be fixing this computer."

"You won't need it anymore."

"But…"

Amy puts a hand on Tails' shoulder. "It's alright, Tails. It's about time we say goodbye to this old base."

"…Alright. Let's go."

—–—

"Eggman is making prototypes again? Oh no, this is bad. This is really, really bad."

Amy questions to Tails, "I don't understand, what's so bad? Eggman doesn't have the resources to power them all."

Tails looks over to Infinite. "I was going through some of the data I collected on the Ruby, investigating what you said about it, that it was damaged. And you were right."

Knuckles raises an eyebrow in confusion. "So isn't that good for us?"

Tails shakes his head. "No, not at all. Eggman wasn't there last time to see how the Ruby gained power as more prototypes were made, he doesn't know that it almost destroyed the world."

The Wolf nods slowly in remembrance.

"I think the Ruby was first damaged when Sonic was fighting against Blacklight. He said something about a reaction between the Ruby and the Emeralds. Somehow, that damage ended up opening fractures in Null Space, like the one you managed to escape through, Infinite. And these fractures…they lead to _every_ dimension. Which means, once the Ruby is done destroying this dimension, it can go on to destroy the entire multiverse. Anything and everything that exists, that ever has existed, will be gone."

Shadow nods. "Feeding on Blacklight's desire, it will eventually build up enough power to do that."

Infinite adds, "And as the Doctor makes prototypes, the Ruby will gain the strength of will to take over Blacklight's mind. Giving it the necessary tool to carry it out."

Tails nods. "And the prototypes themselves can expand its influence, making it all happen even faster."

The Commander steps forward. "Sounds like we have our work cut out for us. So before we get started, there's one last order of business." He indicates over to Infinite and the Wolf. "What do I call these two?"

Infinite declares simply, "I am Infinite."

"…Sure you are." Regardless, he takes out a data pad and enters it in. He looks over to the Wolf. "And you?"

The Wolf shrugs.

"What, why…why did you shrug? It's a simple question, what is your name? It's just for the records."

Still, the Wolf makes the same gesture.

Knuckles steps in to help. "Back in the Resistance, we used to call him 'Rookie'. But…" He looks at him directly. "…come to think of it, I don't know what your name is, either." He looks around, but Tails and Amy both shake their heads. "Well, I promised I would stop calling you that. It's about time we make it official. But what do we call you now?"

The Wolf still doesn't suggest anything.

Amy poses slowly, "Instead of Rookie…what about…Hero?"

He scratches at the back of his head in embarrassment, giving a slight chuckle.

Knuckles encourages, "Come on, don't be modest. I like it. It suits you."

Tails gives him a smile. "I'll bet Sonic would say the same thing."

Even Bruno squeaks encouragingly.

The Wolf looks over to Infinite. But he doesn't seem to paying attention. Finally, the Wolf gives the Commander an affirmative nod.

"Very well then, General Hero." He enters the name in to the pad. Hero the Wolf smiles hearing the name used for the first time. Bruno pats him on the back approvingly. The Commander turns back to the globe projection in the center of the room. "Let's get started." Everyone gathers around the globe. "Since his retreat from Central City, Eggman's been quiet, which gives us the chance we need to target the Ruby. Even better, Blacklight's forces have launched an attack into Eggman territory, spreading his defenses thin along our borders. And with that, the command is yours, Shadow."

All eyes turn to Shadow as he steps up to the globe. "Alright…" He takes a closer look at all of the small numbers and statistics on the globe. "It looks Blacklight's defenses are thinnest here and here." He points to two yellow spots on the edge of blue territory. He looks up to the Commander. "How many squadrons do we have available?"

"At present…four."

"Four? That's it?"

"There's already a war waging, Shadow. That's all we could spare you. Prove what you can do here, start turning this war around, and we might be able to get you more."

"…Alright. That's what we have to work with. What about Omega, where is he?"

Rouge answers, "On assignment in Eggman territory. You know, doing what Omega does best."

"We want him here with us. I want you to go in after him, back him up, and extract him."

Rouge nods. "You got it, _Commander_ Shadow."

"For the rest of us, we'll have to split into three teams. Two will head to Star Light Zone, two into Apotos with a squadron for backup to deal with its stronger defenses, and two of us will have to stay behind with the rest of the troops to keep our borders secure."

Tails volunteers first, "I think I should stay behind. These computers look like they could use a few upgrades."

After giving Tails a look for a few moments, the Commander adds, "If the point is to deter invaders, you should probably stay as well, Shadow."

"Fine. Knuckles, Amy, you take Apotos. Hero, you and Infinite cover Star Light. Everyone clear?"

"Knuckles cheers, "Yeah! Let's do this, everyone!" Much of the room cheers along with him. Knuckles, Amy, Rouge, and Hero start to file out the door. But Hero stops at the door as Infinite approaches Shadow.

He speaks quietly, "About your friend's Virtual Reality problem…I wouldn't hold out hope for him waking up on his own. Just warning you."

"Fine. Then he'll wake up once we've dealt with Blacklight."

"Afraid not. Once it's been created, the Virtual Reality runs itself, fueled by the desire to escape. The harder he tries, the tighter its grasp grows on him. And unless he manages to bend the rules as you did, he'll be stuck that way. However…once I get the Ruby…I could wake him up for you."

"Oh, and you'd do that out of the kindness of your heart?"

"Well…you have a point there. Of course I'd want something in return. Perhaps we can discuss that part later. Just keep it in mind, yes?"

Shadow glares at him suspectingly. But he gives a slight nod.

Bruno starts to squeak impatiently from the doorway. Infinite turns to them with a growl. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming."

—–—

 **Apotos - Windmill Isle**

Knuckles and Amy stand off side-by-side against a line of the shadowy Blacklight minions. Some of them appear larger and more muscular than others, while some float off the ground, seeming to have ghostly tails instead of legs.

Knuckles turns to Amy. "Think you can handle this many?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Amy suddenly charges towards the line, hammer raised high.

"Hey, wait for me!" Knuckles runs in after her, punching through a few of them along the way. Just like the more powerful Replicas, they all dissolve into a glitchy haze upon being defeated.

Despite the overwhelming numbers, the powerhouses of Knuckles and Amy are more than enough to deal with them, fighting back to back. One of the brutish minions charges at Knuckles, and he blocks it with his hands, struggling against it in strength for several moments. Finally, he lifts it over his head and tosses it behind him, into the path of Amy's hammer. She sends the creature flying into a large group of smaller ones, destroying them all. The last few stragglers are quickly dealt with, leaving behind a flag in the ground bearing the yellow insignia of Infinite.

Amy looks over to Knuckles, having hardly broken a sweat. "Would you like to do the honors?"

Appearing a bit more winded, Knuckles answers, "With pleasure." He walks up to the flag, rips it from the ground, and snaps it in his hands like a twig.

Amy takes out a small metal cylinder. She presses a button on the side, and it suddenly telescopes out into a much longer flagpole. The blue flag on the top unfurls, showing the insignia of the United Federation. Amy clears her throat. "This city belongs to the United Federation and its people!" She plunges the flag into the same spot that Blacklight's was planted. Then she looks over to Knuckles. "That's how the Commander told us to say it, right?" Knuckles shrugs. Amy shakes her head and reaches up to tap her communicator. "This is Amy. Apotos has been secured."

While Amy is busy, a somewhat familiar-sounding voice shouts out, "Hey, you! Over here!" A large mustached man waves Knuckles over from behind a cart by the seaside. Knuckles approaches in curiosity. The man continues to bellow, "That was truly incredible what you just did there! This city is truly in your debt!"

Knuckles questions, "Who…are you?"

"Well, I'm an ice cream vendor!" He indicates one of his wares on the cart, a decadent-looking sundae piled high with toppings. "Best in world, many would tell you."

"You're selling ice cream…next to a war zone?"

"Of course! This isn't the first time our city has had to deal with monsters, you know. I tell you, even when the world's falling apart, people will still line up from all over to get a taste of my signature Chocolate Chipped Cream Sundae Supreme! It's a family recipe, you know. Passed down to me through generations, and now I'm the only one left to guard its much-coveted secrets."

Knuckles eyes the ice cream, smacking his lips. "It…does look pretty good." His hand moves down to his rumbling stomach.

"Please, have one, on the house!" The man takes the sundae from its pedestal and happily holds it out to Knuckles. "It's the least I could do for a hero like yourself." Knuckles reaches out for it, but the man suddenly pulls it back. "Just remember to tell all your friends! Satisfaction, guaranteed!"

"Yeah, yeah, I will." Knuckles finally takes ahold of the treat. Before he takes a bite, he looks back up to the man curiously. "You know, there's something familiar about you. I can't quite put my finger on it."

"Oh, yes, I get that all the time. I must have one of those voices, you know how it is."

Knuckles echoes back in a similar tone, "One of those voices. Right. That must be it." Knuckles finally takes a bite out of the ice cream. Immediately, his eyes light up. He softly babbles something incoherent through his full mouth. The ice cream man gives a satisfied nod, his work done. After swallowing loudly, he turns back to Amy. "Hey, Amy! You've gotta try this!" He starts running back to her.

"What's this about?"

"It's ice cream. Come on, have a bite." He holds it out to her.

"Ice cream? You bought ice cream at a time like this?"

"I didn't _buy_ it. But seriously, you'll get it if you give it a taste."

Amy scrutinizes the towering treat in Knuckles' hand. "Do you have any idea how much sugar is in that thing? I'm getting sick just looking at it."

"Come on, just one bite won't hurt you."

"…Fine. But you know you can't take that whole thing with you, right? We need to–" Before she can finish, a small laser blast impacts the ice cream, splattering it in both of their faces.

Knuckles turns slowly to the source of the attack, wiping off his face with a stiff movement. "Alright, bub. I don't know who you think you are, but you just made me _very_ angry. This just got personal."

Amy tightens her grip on her hammer. "Oh, it's already personal."

Metal Sonic stands opposite to them, aiming a wrist-mounted blaster. A momentary glitch near its face betrays its nature as a Replica.

"Alright. Let's make this quick. We'll…" Knuckles trails off as Metal Sonic's arms begin to transform, revealing guns, blasters, missile launchers, rows and piles of weapons of every imaginable kind, some almost as large as the body of the Replica itself. "Uhh…that's new, right?"

"Run!" Both dive out of the way as Metal Sonic opens fire, wreaking total havoc.

—–—

 **The GUN CLIP**

Tails appears hard at work at one of the computer terminals. Behind him, Shadow stares at the holographic globe, appearing deep in thought. The Commander doesn't appear to be in the room, leaving them alone. Tails looks up from his work, turning his head to look at Shadow. After a few moments of silence, he questions slowly, "Shadow? Are you…doing alright?"

Shadow shakes himself back to reality. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just worried that you…you… How did Rouge put it back then? That you're losing sight of what's important to you."

"What's important to me is stopping Blacklight. One way or the other."

"And what about when that's done?"

Shadow doesn't answer for a while.

"When I found you…you were meditating, right?" Shadow gives a nod. "Why?"

"…It helps me focus."

"Yeah, but…what were you doing? Were you…asking yourself questions? Questions you don't know the answer to?"

Again, Shadow doesn't answer.

"Back on the ARK…it feels like such a long time ago, now. Back then, I was so sure that you were going to be one of us, one of the heroes. And I know you don't want to be a hero like that, but…are you happy with the way you are now?"

"If you're asking me to stay with GUN, I won't."

"That's not what I meant. There are other ways to help people, Shadow. Right now, Sonic is…or at least, he was, before all this started…training with the Chaos Emeralds. Learning everything he can about them and how to use them. Because he knows that he'll be able to help more people that way."

"So, he found his teacher after all…?"

"He's spending his time finding answers, instead of asking questions. And it's making him happy. Happier than he's been…in a while. Don't you want that?"

"…That's not who I am."

"It can be. If you aren't happy with who you are, there's always a way to change it. And it starts with deciding on that change for yourself."

Suddenly, a loud alarm blares through the room. "What's going on!?"

Tails turns back to his console. "It's another attack!"

"Eggman again?"

"No, I don't think so."

"How many?"

"Umm…just one."

—–—

Two GUN soldiers stand guard on the outer streets of Central City. A lone hedgehog-shaped figure steps unsteadily through the shadows of a nearby building. One of the soldiers raises his weapon, spotting the figure. "Hold it! This is a restricted area." His partner does the same.

The figure silently continues its march. Its head appears to roll loosely between its shoulders.

"I-I said freeze! Don't move, o-or we'll shoot!"

The figure finally steps into the light. Its body itself appears to made from black rock and silvery-blue crystal. Its piercing red and yellow eyes look to each of the soldiers with pity, as it continues its staggering walk on the crystalline stubs it has instead of feet. Mephiles the Dark lets out a menacing chuckle through his mouthless muzzle. He directs each of his hands outwards, letting out two blasts of dark energy that knock the soldiers away before they get the chance to react.

To the familiar sound of a Chaos Control, Shadow and Tails drop to the ground in front of Mephiles. Tails looks over the creature with fear. "Shadow…what is that thing? It…it looks like _you_."

Shadow seems just as tense looking at his own shadow. "I don't know. …But I don't like it."

"What…did you forget me, Shadow?"

Shadow gasps. "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

As Mephiles tilts his head to the side, a glitchy violet haze appears by his face.

Shadow relaxes considerably. "Of course. You're just another Ruby illusion."

"Is that all you think I am? Didn't you know, Shadow? Everything has an origin. You may have forgotten. But the will of Chaos never forgets." Despite not having a mouth, Mephiles somehow gives a vicious grin.

Shadow seems to recall Blacklight once saying something similar. " _What_ are you?"

"For now…I am no one. Just a humble messenger." He makes a false yet elegant bow. "My master, Blacklight, grows impatient. He wishes to settle your unfinished deal. He wishes to face you. Immediately. And he suggests you bring your payment."

"And if I don't?"

"He predicted you'd say such a thing. Which is why, as we speak, some of your friends are paying the price for _your_ insolence. You can expect there to be more, the longer you wait. Perhaps, not in the same form. Perhaps, next time, your suffering will come from where you least expect it. Perhaps–"

"Chaos Spear!" Shadow's sudden attack knocks Mephiles backwards. Then he appears in a flash behind him, kicking him upwards into the air. And he appears in the air as well, sparking with a red aura. "Chaos Blast!"

The force of the explosion sends Mephiles crashing into the street below. When the dust clears, Mephiles stares blankly into the sky. "We'll be waiting for you, Shadow." He starts to laugh maniacally as his form melts into a black sludge, which continues to dissolve into the usual glitchy haze.

Shadow glares down at the spot where the Replica landed, panting from exertion. Tails steps up to his side. "You can't listen to anything he says. Blacklight's trying to get into your head. He's trying to goad you into going after him alone. And we both know that won't work."

"I know…it's just an empty threat. We'll stop him. The right way."

Tails gives him a happy nod.

—–—

 **Star Light Zone - Celestial City**

High up on green-tinted metal scaffolding, Infinite and Hero do battle against a Chaos 0 Replica. Chaos blasts high-pressured jets of water out of its hands, one aimed at each of its opponents. Hero launches a grappling wire at some scaffolding up above, pulling himself out of the way of the attack. Once above the watery creature, he aims his flamethrower straight downwards at it. But it blasts its jets of water straight back up at him, cancelling out the flames. While it's distracted, Infinite leaps in at it, slashing straight across it with his blade. He smirks in satisfaction. But the water quickly reforms where it had been slashed apart. With another burst of water, it blasts him backwards into a wall.

Hero lands back on the ground, as his Wispon starts to vibrate. He gives it a nod, before running back at Chaos. Chaos fires another blast of water at him, but this time he slides underneath, continuing forward. As he gets up onto his knees, he plunges his weapon into the Replica's watery body.

"Burst!"

The Wispon releases a powerful explosion from inside the creature, splattering it in all directions. The scattered water quickly fades away. Bruno emerges from the Wispon, panting heavily, appearing quite tired. But not too tired for a celebratory fist bump.

"Well, well, well. Mute and Ugly _both_ came to see us? We must really be making friends here in the future."

Hero and Infinite look up with gasps to see the masked Blacklight descending towards their platform. Infinite freezes on seeing the Phantom Ruby at his chest.

Blacklight looks down to Infinite, still on the ground by the wall. "We must say, we really weren't expecting to see _you_ again. Though…part of us is disappointed that it took you so long.

Infinite climbs back to his feet. "That Ruby…belongs…to me."

"Yeesh, jealous much? We mean, we know it must've been a hard breakup for you, but come on. You really need to move on with your own life. There are other sources of ultimate power out there. One of them must be right for you. But you're old news. We make the better couple, and there's nothing you can do about it."

"You'll pay for what you've done to me!" Infinite leaps at Blacklight, sword drawn.

"Ha ha ha ha ha! Pathetic." Blacklight generates and orb of cubes between his hands, and fires it in a stream at the charging Infinite.

Acting fast, Hero uses his grappling wire to launch himself at Infinite, knocking him out of the way, and taking the full force of Blacklight's attack. He falls, and collapses back to the ground, unconscious.

 **To be continued…**


	35. S0 E30: Don't Believe

**BREAKING NEWS**

There is nothing but constant, harsh, grating static filling the screen.

—–—

Hero the Wolf struggles to open his eyes, slowly regaining consciousness. Clutching at his head, he rises back to his feet with a loud grunt.

Shadow's voice comes in over the communicator. "Hero! Hero, what's going on?"

Hero looks around in confusion. He stands on the crest of a small hill, in broad daylight. One side of the hill leads off into wide grassy plains, while the opposite side gives way to dirt and rock. A small town lies off not far in the distance.

"What are you doing out there? You need to get back to base."

Hero looks down at the Burst Wispon in his hand. He taps the side of it a couple times. Nothing happens. He seems to be completely alone.

"Get moving. You're wasting time."

Seeming unsettled, Hero slowly begins to step down the grassy side of the hill. Something in front of him begins to move. A cluster of shadowy figures begin to rise out of the ground. Blacklight's minion creatures. Dark clouds are quickly forming in the sky. Pointing his weapon at them in threat, Hero backs off slowly, preparing to run the other way. But more creatures rise behind him as well. He's soon completely surrounded. The creatures begin to lurch towards him from all sides. Hero lets loose a stream of fire at each one as it draws close, but can't handle them all quickly enough, as they continue to draw in closer as a group. The first few drops of rain begin to fall.

Changing tactics, Hero concentrates his fire in a single direction, then charges through as quickly as he can, carving a line through the solid mass of creatures. The creatures close in behind him, reaching and clawing after him. The drizzle has become a downpour. As he makes it through the last row of creatures, one of them manages to claw right at his shoulder. He cries out in pain from the wound, but keeps on running, quickly leaving the creatures behind.

His feet splash through a deepening puddle, already reaching up to his ankles. But it isn't a puddle. All around him, as far as the eye can see, the water level has risen up to the same constant height, and still continues to rise from the pouring rain. He looks over his shoulder and gasps, seeing a massive tidal wave approaching. Panting now, he runs from the torrent of water as fast as he can move, but it's no use, as the wave soon crashes over him, sending him flailing through the water. He manages to swim back up, gasping for air as he reaches the surface, before being thrown back under again by the torrential waves. Struggling back up again, he manages to grab ahold of an uprooted tree that floats through the chaotic waters, and pulls himself up onto it, given time to finally breathe.

After panting and coughing on his hands and knees for a short while, he rises up to a kneeling position, points his weapon out, and pulls the trigger a few times. Nothing comes out. It appears to be broken. Angrily, he wraps his fingers around the top cover of the Wispon, and rips it off, revealing an empty compartment inside. He stares at the empty compartment with sorrow and confusion. Then, letting out an angry shout, he hurls the useless weapon as far out into the water as he can. Then he collapses back onto his hands. His wounded shoulder heaves in a muffled sob. The rain continues to pour over him.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 30**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 4: Don't Believe**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **Apotos - Bell Square**

Knuckles dives in for a punch at the heavily-armed Metal Sonic Replica. A large missile rises out of Metal Sonic's back, and fires. Amy jumps in, knocking the missile off course with her hammer, allowing Knuckles to keep going. But Metal Sonic switches to a continuous red laser beam fired out of the center of its chest, forcing Knuckles to swerve out of the way into a glide. He lands back on the ground next to Amy.

"It's no use! We aren't fast enough to get in close!"

An unmistakably familiar voice answers, "Sound like a job for _me_!" A blue streak speeds by, slamming into Metal Sonic with a spin attack. Sonic the Hedgehog stands triumphantly over the Replica robotic replica. "Hey, guys. What'd I miss?" Beneath his foot, Metal Sonic points up its wrist-mounted blaster, and fires. Sonic is sent flying back.

Sonic manages to land on his feet, covering his face with his hands and arms where he was hit. "Come o-on, guys! Let's take him together!" He brings his arms back down, shaking off the hit. A slight amount of some sort of smoke dissipates away, but he doesn't appear to be burned anywhere. He dashes back in towards Metal Sonic, this time knocking it into the air. As it falls back to the ground, Amy strikes it from the side with her hammer, sending it flying towards Knuckles, who pounds it into the ground. Defeated, the Replica fades away in the usual glitchy haze.

Sonic turns back to his friends. "So, how–"

Amy cuts him off, embracing him without shame. "Oh, Sonic, I'm so glad you're okay! Tails said that you…you were…"

Quite uncomfortable, Sonic gently pushes her away, reclaiming his personal space. "Right now, I'm here, and I'm fine, and that's what matters. Now…shouldn't we be getting back to base?"

Amy nods. "Yeah, that's right. I already sent the troops to secure the rest of the city, so we're free to go. You know, Tails is going to be so happy to see you up again. He was really worried."

"Yeah, I'll bet he was."

Knuckles looks at Sonic with confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Just…you know…I'll bet he was."

Amy waves Knuckles along. "Come on, let's go, Knuckles." She starts walking, Sonic following behind.

"Hey wait, I was going to get another ice cream first!"

"Knuckles…"

"Fine, fine, I'm coming." He runs to catch up.

—–—

 **Casino Park - Roulette Carnival**

E-123 Omega unleashes machine gun fire from each of his hands, tearing through entire rows of Eggman robots. Every last one of them with quickly dealt with. "Annihilation complete."

"Annihilation? You call that an annihilation?" Suspended by a large jetpack, Heavy Gunner rises above the circular platform. "I could blow up more stuff in my sleep!"

Omega locks his sensors on the Gunner. "Robot model not recognized. Initiating scans… Error: scanner failure. No data found." He points an arm up threateningly. "Identify yourself!"

"No data found? This presents a problem, now doesn't it? Well then, let me introduce myself. Heavy Gunner, at your service. You could call me the sheriff around these parts." He takes a closer look at Omega's weapons. "Ooh, that's a pretty nice gun you got there yourself. But as you can see, mine's bigger." He hefts his massive blaster up onto his shoulder, and pats it on the side a couple times. "And you can thank her new power source for your little scanner failure. These Rubies are _crazy,_ you know? But they sure pack a wallop. Here, let me show you!" An intense violet glow forms down the barrel of the large cannon.

Omega opens fire, unloading an arm's worth of ammunition at the Gunner. But the bullets all seem to bounce harmlessly off of a thin violet shield. In response, Heavy Gunner fires a massive missile at Omega. Omega rapidly transforms one of his arms into a missile launcher of his own, firing a small one off immediately. The two missiles collide and explode between them in a massive fireball. Heavy Gunner gives a laugh at the spectacle. But he's already fired off two more. Omega guns at one of them until it finally explodes, but the other continues to fly at him.

"Omega, look out!" Rouge suddenly appears, striking at the missile, sending it flying in the opposite direction.

Heavy Gunner's eyes flash in terror as his own missile head right towards him. He bobs out of the way just in time to avoid being hit by it. "Hey, watch it!"

Rouge looks up to Omega. "Hey. Having fun?"

"This unidentified Eggman robot provides adequate challenge. However, assistance is not necessary."

Heavy Gunner shouts angrily, "Adequate!? I'll show you 'adequate'!" He starts to fire off missiles at a rapid pace.

While Rouge goes to work kicking the missiles back at the shooter, Omega targets all weapons on Heavy Gunner. The attacks are still deflected off the Gunner's barrier, and he lets out a hearty laugh at Omega's failure. But while he's distracted, all of the reflected missiles hit their new target, blasting away at, and finally destroying, the Gunner's shield. When the smoke clears he's become covered in soot, his cannon sparks dangerously, and his damaged jetpack barely keeps him suspended. "Grr… We'll duel again some other time, _Omega_. I'll remember you." He jets away, stuttering through the air and trailing smoke.

Rouge once again turns back to Omega. "Assistance is not necessary, hm?"

Omega repeats, "Assistance was not necessary. However…it increased combat efficiency."

"Good to see you too. Now come on, let's get back to base. Shadow's waiting for us."

"Shadow has reclaimed his military position?"

"Not exactly. I'll explain on the way."

—–—

 **The GUN CLIP**

Vector the Crocodile stands with arms crossed, flanked on either side by his teammates, Espio and Charmy. "Sorry to disappoint, Commander. We may've turned down payment after the last war, but we've got ourselves a strict limit of one pro bono job only. We have a business to run, I'm sure you understand. You ain't paying, we ain't fighting."

Charmy cheers, "Yeah, one pro bono job only!" He looks over to Espio and whispers, "Hey, what's 'pro bono' mean?" Espio shushes him.

The GUN Commander responds simply, "I never said you wouldn't be paid."

This catches Vector's attention. "Go on."

"A military General receives…quite a fair annual income. I can arrange for you to get the first year's up front. And, once this war is over, I can make sure you're free to leave without any further obligations. That goes for each of the three of you, of course."

When Vector realizes that his mouth is hanging open, he quickly shakes his head and clears his throat. "My teammates and I will need a moment to discuss your offer."

"Take all the time you need."

The Chaotix take a few steps away, and huddle close together. Vector whispers, "Is this guy _crazy_? Three years' salary, up front?"

Espio adds, "And the sooner this war ends, the less work we put in for just as much payment."

Charmy shouts loudly, "Yeah! We're gonna be rich!" The other two both shush him.

Vector turns back to the Commander. "We accept. Count us in."

"Excellent." The Commander offers his hand. "Welcome to the team, General Vector."

Vector returns a firm handshake. "The Chaotix are happy to help anyone in need. For the right price."

While still shaking his hand, the Commander leans in close to Vector's ear, whispering, "Speaking of price, the money you still owe GUN for your little joyride to the ARK during the Black Arms invasion will be deducted from your payment."

"What!? I don't–" Before he can finish objecting, the door to the base hisses open, as Rouge and Omega enter.

Rouge looks over to Vector. "Who invited these losers?"

"Losers!?"

The Commander answers, " _I_ invited them. Because I've seen them do good work." Vector takes note of the compliment, but doesn't say anything further.

Omega walks up to Shadow, confronting him directly. "Why do you continue to waste your own time?"

"Wh-what?"

"You cannot continue to exist without a primary objective. Yet you insist on abandoning the longest-held objective of your existence. It does not compute."

Shadow shakes his head. "I wouldn't expect you to understand."

"Negative. Comprehensive data exists on the alteration of primary objective. Your failure to complete the process is entirely your own."

Rouge sighs. "Leave it to Omega to put things bluntly. But he does have a point, Shadow. You've been brooding for more than six months now. I get needing some time, but are you really going to go right back to it once this is all over?"

Shadow turns away from both of them. "I don't need anyone telling me what to do."

"Sure doesn't seem that way."

The conversation ends as the door to the base opens once again, this time letting in Amy and Knuckles. Knuckles announces loudly, "I have some great news, everyone."

Shadow looks up. "What is it?"

"Why don't I let Sonic tell you himself?" Knuckles steps aside, letting Sonic come in through the door.

Sonic opens his arms wide as if starting a show. "I'm awake!"

The slightly crowded room goes alight with excited murmuring. Tails flies up to Sonic excitedly. "Sonic, you're okay! I can't believe it, it seemed like you were… How did you… Wait…" Tails looks out behind him. "…where's Chaos?"

Sonic scratches his head for a moment. "Chaos like the Emerald, or the creature, or… oh, the guy! You mean Chaos the guy!" He shakes his head, muttering to himself, "Who thought that was a good idea, anyway?"

"What was that?"

"Oh, right, Chaos, he…he uh…wanted to stay back, and, you know…meditate and stuff. That's just what he does, you know?"

"Umm… right…"

Shadow questions, "How did you escape from the Virtual Reality?"

"Virtual what? Oh, oh, is that what was going on? Well it was like…you know, like a…like a dream. I just reached the end, and then, you know, I woke up."

Rouge tilts her head to the side a bit. "You feeling alright there, Big Blue? Seems like you're a little _confused_."

"Uhh…yeah… That must be…the residual effects…of the Virtual Reality. Yeah, that must be it. So come on guys, are we gonna start winning this war, or what?"

Knuckles shakes his head. "We're still waiting on a report in from–" The door hisses open once again. "Nevermind, that must be them."

Instead, an unmistakable voice sounds through the doorway. "Hey, guys. What'd I–" Sonic the Hedgehog freezes in the doorway as he catches sight of Sonic the Hedgehog. "What the–"

The first Sonic steps right up into the face of the new one, placing an accusatory finger on his chest. "Just who are you supposed be? Some kind of _faker_?"

"Faker!? Who you calling a faker, faker!?"

"You're trying to call _me_ the fake? I was here first, pal."

"Yeah? Well you won't be here for long!" The new Sonic dives into the old one, and the two of them tumble across the floor, quickly making it impossible to tell one from the other.

Amy shouts in the confusion, "Oh no! What do we do!?"

Tails stares at the fight in utter confusion. "What's even happening here!?"

Attempting to solve the problem, Vector and Omega each grab a shoulder of one of the Sonics, pulling them apart. They continue to struggle against their strong-armed captors, trying to get back at each other. "What're you doing!? Let go of me!"

"Let me back at him!"

Shadow steps between the two of them. "Both of you, shut up." They immediately obey, leaving the whole room completely silent. He turns to the Sonic held by Vector. "Who are you?"

"Come on, Shadow. We've been through a lot together. We're rivals. Friends, I like to think. Look me in the eye, Shadow. You know it's me, don't you?"

Shadow turns to the other one without a response. "You?"

"Look, Shadow, I know you and I don't always see eye-to-eye. But you aren't really going to believe sappy over there, are you? Don't fall for his tricks. _I'm_ the real me."

Shadow closes his eyes with a sigh. "Let them go. Both of you, look at me." The Sonics are released, and obediently turn to Shadow. "I'm only going to ask this once. Who is the faker?"

Each of the Sonics at once point to each other and shout fervently, "He is!"

Shadow looks from one to the other, nodding slowly. "That's all I needed to know." Suddenly, Shadow throws a powerful roundhouse kick that hits both of the Sonics, sending them crashing back into the wall. Everyone in the room gasps, as one Sonic dissolves into a glitchy haze, while the other goes up in a billowing cloud of smoke that sparkles like the stars.

When the smoke dissipates, Heavy Magician is revealed, crouching on the floor. "Well…always such a shame when a trick goes awry." She looks across the room to the near dozen heroes that all stare at her angrily. "So…for my next trick, I'll make a pretty lady disappear!" With a flick of her wand, she's enveloped by another cloud of smoke. Shadow dives into the cloud, but this time, there's no one inside.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Espio finally asks, "They were both fake?"

Shadow nods. "Blacklight wants to throw us off guard. Make us feel unsafe. That other one just wanted to pull a trick. Maybe lead us into a trap."

Amy adds, "So that must mean…"

Tails finishes, "The real Sonic is still asleep. Still trapped in Virtual Reality."

The Commander questions, "How did you realize they weren't real?"

"Simple. The real Sonic wouldn't have passed up the chance to point at me."

The Commander gives a confused look, but doesn't question any further.

Knuckles questions, "And…you were certain about that?"

"Mostly."

Before Knuckles can object, the familiar hiss of the door sounds yet again, making everyone turn to its source. This time, Bruno the Wisp floats in the doorway, bearing a terrified expression. He starts to squeak and jabber at a feverous pace.

Tails quickly pulls out his Handheld to translate. "Hold on, hold on, I'm working on it." He puts in commands almost as fast as the Wisp babbles. "Can you slow down? I can't translate that fast." The Wisp ignores him, maybe even speaking faster in frustration. "Wh-what? The infirmary? He was hit? … Oh no." He lets the device drop down to his side. Finally understood, the Wisp turns and soars back out the door, and Tails runs to follow him, waving everyone else to come along.

—–—

Hero steps slowly, cautiously through the streets of the town, empty-handed. He absently reaches back to feel the wound on his shoulder, but suddenly draws his hand away from the pain of the touch. There doesn't seem to be any sign of water damage in the town. Even the streets are completely dry. His ears perk up as he notices a faint sound from afar. He picks up his pace a bit to investigate. A single old-fashioned television sits on display in a shop window. A news report appears to be running on the screen, but behind the borders and various channel logos, there's nothing but static, creating the strange sound. He looks at the old screen for a while in confusion and curiosity.

A blinding flash and terrifying boom of lightning and thunder gives him a startling fright, turning his attention to the sky. The lightning appears to have struck not far off in the town, starting a fire whose glow can be seen from a fair distance away.

Hero quickly surveys his surroundings, looking for options in case another torrential rainstorm begins. Instead, something solid strikes him in the head, and rolls out onto the street. Rubbing his head from the impact, he bends down to pick it up. It appears to be a shiny red apple. He turns it around in his hand a few times, trying to figure out where it came from. He looks up into the air, and is struck with an expression of horror. Thousands more apples are raining down from the sky. He throws up his arms to protect his head just as the apples start to hit. Taking shelter, he barges through the door of the shop. Inside, the static from the television is much louder, mixing oddly with the sound of falling apples outside.

Hero takes a few deep breaths in his moments of respite. An odd hissing sound starts to mix with the ambient noise. He looks up to its source slowly. Out of the shadows in the corner of the room, a large pair of piercing yellow eyes stare out at him. A giant snake, white and covered in green patterns, slithers out from the shadows. Its forked tongue sticks out as it hisses again.

Hero rushes back out into the street, this time letting out an audible shout of terror, gladly taking the barrage of fruit over a duel with the creature. He runs through the apple-covered streets as fast as he can go, once again protecting his head with his arms. One apple makes it past his defenses as he runs, striking him in the face, and leaving behind a large crack in his glasses. He still keeps running.

He doesn't at first seem to notice a giant shadow forming in his path. Once he does, he manages to skid to a halt just inches away from the gigantic, building-sized apple that crashes into the street. It starts to roll towards him, quickly picking up speed as he turns and sprints the other way, seeming intent on crushing him.

Hero gasps as he catches sight of the snake, still coming after him from the direction he now runs, baring its fangs in preparation to strike. At the last moment, Hero fires his grappling wire up and away, pulling him to relative safety as the snake behind him misses its mark and plunges its fangs into the giant apple instead.

Hero lands back on the ground and keeps running, this time not even bothering to protect himself. He's quickly losing his breath. Suddenly, one of his feet lands on an apple at the wrong angle, and he slips and tumbles to the floor. He struggles to get back to his knees as quickly as he can.

A gloved hand is offered out to him. An unmistakable voice greets, "Hey, buddy. Need some help?"

—–—

Hero's unconscious form lies out on the medical stretcher. Pristine white bandages have been wrapped around his shoulder and back. Infinite stands over him, staring at the bandaged wound. Bruno and Tails rush in to the infirmary room, quickly followed by the others. Tails looks from Hero to Infinite. "What…what happened?"

Infinite doesn't turn. "Blacklight showed up unexpectedly. Trapped him in a Virtual Reality."

"And…you brought him back here, instead of fighting?"

He doesn't answer for a moment. "The Ruby was right there. But there was nothing I could do about it. Not alone. Not when I'm so weak."

"That wound…was he hurt in the battle?"

"No. It happened while he was asleep. It happened in the Virtual Reality."

Bruno hovers back and forth near Hero's face, letting out a depressed squeak.

Vector shakes his head. "Man, poor Rookie. Who knows what's happening to him in there?"

Knuckles objects, "He's not a Rookie anymore. He's a Hero. I know he can pull through this."

Amy lets out a sigh. "First Sonic, and now this. Blacklight won't stop until he's trapped everyone of us, will he?"

Shadow shakes his head. "We won't let that happen. We have to stop him ourselves." He looks up to Infinite. "You…did the right thing."

"You've all said it yourselves. Anything else would be suicide." He looks down at the blade in his hand. "He was my only hope. My only chance. But he fell to the Ruby's power, just like all the rest. It's just like I always said. Hope is a fleeting illusion."

Tails shakes his head. "You're wrong. It was never about just one person. Hero alone, Shadow alone, you alone, were never going to accomplish anything. It's all of us, working together as a team, that's going to save the world. For Sonic. For Hero. For everyone."

Shadow nods in agreement. "We can't let this set us back. We need to keep fighting." He gives a questioning look to Infinite.

Infinite takes another pause. "…I'll keep fighting. Because I want to kill that Blacklight myself."

Suddenly, a large crack forms in Hero's glasses, startling everyone. Tails looks up to Shadow with concern. But Shadow doesn't have any answer.

Another voice suddenly announces, "My apologies, is this a bad time?"

Tails looks up to the voice with surprise. "Chaos?"

Chaos the Hedgehog stands in the doorway of the infirmary. "I was told I could find you all here. I'm pleased to see that you've done so well here, Miles."

"I don't understand, what are you doing here?"

"You've…inspired me, Miles. After…some convincing, I came to realize that, if my purpose here truly is to help the Controller maintain Balance, I should work to fulfill that purpose, whether he is able to or not."

"But the reason you were staying behind was to watch Sonic, what about him?"

Shadow cuts him off before he can answer. "Who are you?"

"Ah, are you the substitute for the Controller that Miles mentioned?"

Tails immediately objects, "That's not how it is, you just missed the speech. We're all here to save the world together, it isn't about replacing one person."

"Yes, yes, of course, but this is the one, right?"

"Yeah, I guess…" He looks over to Shadow. "Uh, sorry, Shadow, this is Chaos. He's the one who's been training Sonic. He's a friend, we can trust him."

Shadow nods in understanding as Chaos scrutinizes him closely. Chaos questions, "Shadow, hm? I believe the Controller may have mentioned you once. So, you're the one in charge here?"

The Commander steps in. "Technically, I'm the leader of this organization."

"Ah, a man of Balance, I can tell by looking at you." He offers out his hand. "Chaos, Lord of Chaos, at your service."

The Commander shakes his hand, trying not to take the comment as an insult about his eyes. "I'm happy to welcome another member to the team. However, under some special circumstances, Shadow does have command here."

"I see." Chaos turns back to Shadow. "How curious. A heart of Darkness leading against the forces of Darkness. Not altogether unbelievable. But curious."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing at all. Just an observation. But…" He starts to look over Shadow with greater interest. "…there's something else about you. You…you are a natural-born Chaos user, aren't you? I didn't know there were any on this planet."

"Not exactly natural. How can you tell?"

"I can sense the Chaos energy that flows through you. It is…tumultuous. But powerful. Locked deep within, so deep I almost didn't see it at first." His eyes move to the rings around Shadow's wrists. "Curious. Very curious. But enough of that. We have a war to fight, don't we?"

Knuckles steps forward, suddenly objecting, "Wait a minute!" He glares at Chaos suspectingly. "How do we know that you aren't another one of those Replicas, sent here to trick us?"

"A Replica, hm? I suppose I hadn't thought of that. If it helps, I do come bearing something we may find helpful." Chaos presents a glittering green Emerald for everyone to see.

"That doesn't prove anything! How can we trust you?"

Chaos ponders that for a moment. "Hmm…how can you trust me?" As a thought occurs to him, he leans in close to Knuckles, whispering, "You tell me, K'waqochu."

Knuckles recoils back a step at the sound of the Echidna word, waving his hands in indication that that's enough. "Nevermind, nevermind, he's good. I trust him."

"Very good. Now…" Chaos looks over to the side as he notices something. "…why is that one looking at me like that?" He points over at Infinite, who's been glaring at him silently for quite some time.

Infinite answers, "That gem on your chest…what is it?"

"Oh, you must be referring to my Moonstone. It's…rather complicated, but, needless to say, it is important."

"I wonder…does it feel like the Ruby?" Infinite continues to glare into it.

"I…don't mean to be rude, but you are making me feel a bit uncomfortable." Infinite does not respond. "Perhaps…if I…" A bit hesitant, Chaos waves his hand over the seven-colored Moonstone on his chest, and, as if by some sort of magic trick, when his hand leaves, the gem is no longer there. "There. Something the Controller once said, 'Out of sight, out of mind,' if I remember correctly."

With nothing left to look at, Infinite turns back to Hero instead.

Chaos follows his gaze, and takes a close look at Hero. "This one…was he also in a battle against the Phantom Ruby? I sense the same disturbance in his heart."

Tails nods slowly. "Yeah. He's trapped in a Virtual Reality, just like Sonic. And…hey, wait a minute, you never answered my question! Who's taking care of Sonic!?"

"Of course, my mistake. You see, after you left, Miles, I meditated much on the thought of joining your fight. My only conclusion was that my duties to the Controller were more important. That is, until I came across I wise and friendly local. He convinced me that I could not allow the Controller's present condition to prevent me from serving the Balance. He even agreed to watch over the Controller in my place."

" _He_ changed _your_ mind?"

"Well…what he said was… 'The biggest fish only come out when it rains. If you only go fishing when the weather's nice, you'll never catch the one you're looking for.' But I understood what he meant."

"Well…it sounds like he knows what he's talking about. I guess that means Sonic's in good hands."

"I certainly believe so."

—–—

 **Mystic Ruins**

Big the Cat sits on a stool which looks quite a bit too small for him, watching over the unconscious form of Sonic the Hedgehog. He lets out a loud yawn. "Hey Froggy, do you think Mr. Sonic will be okay?" He sits in the quiet for a few moments longer. "Froggy?" He starts to look around in confusion. "Froggy? Froggy, where'd you go?" He hangs his head in sorrow. "Now what am I gonna do?"

—–—

 **Virtual Reality**

Hero backs off a few steps, in fear of the figure that stands before him.

Sonic slowly puts out his hands. "Hey, hey, calm down, buddy. It's me. It's Sonic. I'm really here. Somehow, I think we're connected through this…crazy world."

Hero stops his retreat, and scrutinizes the form of Sonic closely through his broken glasses.

"You want proof? That's fine. Let me show you." Sonic reaches behind him to pull something out. It's a sparkling blue Chaos Emerald. "You see this? This one of the Chaos Emeralds. It's the only reason I've lasted this long in here." He takes a few steps towards Hero, and slowly places the gem in his hands. "It's yours now."

Hero looks to the gem with wonder.

"Feel that warmth? That's no trick. It's the real deal."

He looks up from the Emerald to Sonic. Tears start to well up in his eyes.

Sonic places a hand on Hero's good shoulder. "I know, I know." He seems to be fighting back tears as well. "It's really good to finally see a friendly face." He clears his throat. "Do you know how long I've been in here? Has it been days?" Hero shakes his head. "Weeks?" He gives a nod. "Alright. Weeks. That's not so bad. Is everyone holding up alright? Tails?" A nod again. "Oh, that's a relief. So…if you're here…that must mean people are fighting back, right? Against whoever that guy was pretending to be Infinite?"

Hero gives another nod, but looks up into the sky as he realizes something. There's no longer any apples falling from the sky. Some of the clouds even seem to be thinning out a bit, revealing small patches of sunlight. He looks down. The streets are clear as well.

"Notice anything different? This place somehow reacts to how much you want to get out. The harder you try, the harder it fights back. The crazier things get. As long as you aren't trying anything, things calm down a bit. But now that we're here together, I think we have a pretty good shot at getting out." He holds out a closed fist. "What do you say?"

Hero gives a big smile, and energetically returns the fist bump.

Sonic looks out across the long stretch of road that leads to the grassy hills beyond. "All we need is a straight shot. You ready?"

Hero nods, and takes up a running stance.

Sonic takes a similar stance beside him. "Here we…go!" The two take off together at blistering speed. Then the ground beneath them starts to tremble and crack. "Just keep going! Don't stop for anything!" The road in their path suddenly splits into a massive fissure.

—–—

 **Eggman Empire Fortress**

"Useless, useless, useless!" Eggman points angrily to each of Heavy King, Heavy Gunner, and Heavy Magician in turn. The gash in Heavy King's chestplate appears to have been welded back together, leaving a large metallic scar through the once-clean crown insignia that used to lie there. "All of you have been nothing but failures! I thought you were supposed to be an elite force!"

Orbot comments sarcastically from behind him, "Gee, it's almost like they don't want to be here."

Eggman doesn't seem to hear him. "I'm very disappointed in all of you."

Heavy King growls back, "Perhaps our performance would be more to your liking if we had the real Phantom Ruby, instead of your uncharged fakes."

"This is _not_ an open discussion, King. We're losing this war, and it's _your_ faults. You'll all be sent to defend what's left of our borders. And if you continue to disappoint me, you'll be turned into _scrap metal_. Dismissed!"

Keeping his eyes on the Doctor, Heavy King turns to leave, Gunner and Magician following behind him. As soon as they reach the next room, King turns to Magician. "I've had enough of this. It's time. Is Rider in position?"

Heavy Magician nods. "Yes, but…Boss, you sure this is a good idea?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well…isn't it a bit…overkill? We just want free, we aren't lookin' to demolish the place. We don't gotta destroy the old man."

Gunner objects, "Speak for yourself, missy. We've got the means to demolish the place, we'll be freed along the way, let's do it. So what if we take down that sidewinding old fool along the way?"

"That's enough, both of you. Once we're done here, we're going straight for the Ruby. That will require all the power we have. There is no overkill. Now contact Rider. Tell her to activate it." He leans in close to Heavy Magician. "And _never_ question my command again."

—–—

Outside the fortress, the earth shakes as if by a mighty crash. The crash is followed by another. And another. Large puffs of sparkling smoke form at seemingly random points in the air, as Heavy Magician's disappearing act begins to wear off. Something begins to take shape as the illusion fades. Something terrifyingly massive.

Inside the fortress, alarms wail as the ground continues to shake periodically. Eggman shouts angrily, "Orbot, what's going on!? Are we under attack!?"

Orbot works hard at the main console. "I don't think so, sir. There aren't any intruders on the scanners. Except…here's something, a robot signature not recognized by the system."

"One of the Heavies?"

"No, sir, they were all added to the database."

"Then what!?"

Heavy King's voice sounds from behind them, "Sorry, did I forget to mention?"

Eggman turns to him angrily. "Explain the meaning of this!"

"We brought a little friend to this dimension along with us. Say hello to the Titanic Monarch."

Orbot calls out, "Sir!" He indicates the screen of his console, where he's pulled up live security footage of the outside of the fortress. What marches towards it one powerful step at a time is far larger than the tower itself. Much like a cross between a Death Egg Robot and Heavy King himself, it has a large chestplate still emblazoned with an old-fashioned Eggman insignia instead of a crown, with red chevrons pointing up towards it as if to call attention to it. Each of its hands appear to have a massive cannon built inside. Each step it takes on its massive red and black feet causes another small earthquake.

Heavy King lets out a hearty laugh. "As much as I'd love to stay and watch you squirm, I still have orders to carry out, don't I? I'll head to our borders. Perhaps I'll…' _protect_ ' us, from the Ruby. With my friend's help, of course." He turns to leave, swishing his cape a bit overdramatically.

"Oh no you don't!" Eggman pushes a button on a side console, and the door shuts and seals in front of Heavy King. "You're staying right here, and you're going to call off that thing! That's an order! You must obey!"

"I'm sorry, Doctor. You may control me, but I do not control the Monarch. It's set in its course, now. If you keep me here, then it will destroy us both." He lets out another loud laugh. "Which of us do you think will last longer, hm? This won't be the first total destruction I've survived."

Eggman growls, and shoves Orbot away from the console, sitting down to work for himself, typing furiously.

"Tell me, Doctor, what do you hope to accomplish? This is the most powerful machine you've ever had a hand in creating, and you don't even know about it. You don't know a single thing about it."

"That, my dear Heavy, is where you're wrong." With the last word, he pushes down a single key. The shaking suddenly stops.

"Wh-what!? What have you done!?"

"It's simple really. My counterpart may not have been as smart as I am, but no incarnation of myself would ever be foolish enough not to allow a backdoor into such a dangerous creation. I may not have known what that backdoor would be, but figuring it out was a comparatively easy task. Your Titanic Monarch is now under _my_ control. What shall I make it do, hm?" Struck by an idea, he turns back to the console and enters a few more commands. On the security screen, the Monarch turns, pointing an arm cannon at a small mountain nearby. After several moments of charging, it unleashes an intense, continuous energy blast, which completely obliterates the mountain within seconds. Eggman gives an almost giddy grin at its destructive power. Then he turns back to face the silent Heavy King. "Now, for the more important question. What am I to do with you?"

"I…I will not…"

"Now, now, let's not say anything we might regret." Eggman looks back to the console, and tugs at his mustache in contemplation for several moments. Finally, he presses down on another single key.

Heavy King makes a gasping sound as he reaches for his throat, where his voice chip was implanted. "What…did you do?"

"I disabled your obedience programming. All of yours. Your will is once again your own."

Orbot shouts in surprise, "Boss!?"

Heavy King looks back and forth in confusion. "I…I don't understand."

"You heard me correctly. You've impressed me today, King. That you would go to such lengths to hide this weapon from me. That you would use it to destroy me, at any cost. It was absolutely ruthless. Unfortunately, I don't want any slaves that would ruthlessly try to kill _me_. So you're free. Run along with the rest of your friends, if you still want nothing to do with me. Or…you could stay. Under your own free will. And your ruthlessness, together with my intellect, will be more than enough to conquer this world. How does that sound?"

Heavy King takes a long, silent pause. "You aren't the only one who's been impressed today, Doctor." He drops his scepter down to his side in an act of peace. "Very well. Your army has the full support of the Hard Boiled Heavies."

"Excellent. This is the true start of a long and successful partnership. I'm already certain of it. Now, why don't you tell me more about your friend, here?" Eggman turns back to the image of the Monarch on the screen, somewhat longingly.

"To begin with, it was designed to be powered by the Ruby. Your little test fire likely drained most of its reserve power."

"Oh. I see. Well, luckily for you, my dear Heavy, a Phantom Ruby prototype solves more problems than you might think. I can connect one to the power plant beneath Metropolis, and we'll have a power source almost as limitless as the Phantom Ruby itself. It will take time, however."

"Then we'll wait. And once the Monarch is charged…"

"The world will be ours."

"And the Phantom Ruby along with it." The two share in their deep laughter.

—–—

Sonic and Hero leap over the chasm in their path, letting their speed carry them over the bottomless black pit and to the other side. Everything is falling apart. The ground splits, the sky is on fire, reality itself seems to distort. The air has become filled with great orbs of crimson cubes, which periodically stab out at the double-boosting heroes. They quickly step left and right, dodging the attacks, leaping between the chunks of land that now seem to hover suspended in the air. Blacklight's minion creatures, elongated to monstrous proportions, rise up out of the endless abyss below, reaching out, clawing and smashing at the heroes as they run and leap, always just barely missing. A distant point of light far beyond them slowly begins to grow. "Yeah, that's it! Just like I said, nothing can contain the two of us!" The light grows brighter and brighter, outshining the fiery glow of the illusory sky. "We're almost there… Almost free…"

Suddenly, Sonic gasps, and his eyes go wide. "Not again!" Before anyone can react, Sonic is snatched up into the jaws of the giant snake, as it carries him off in the opposite direction. He calls out from inside the creature's mouth, "Go on without me! This might be your only shot! I'll be fine!"

The light doesn't seem to have faded. After a momentary glance back at Sonic, Hero turns back to the light, clenches his eyes shut, and puts all of his focus into sprinting the rest of the way into the light, until it encompasses all else.

Sonic's voice assures, "It's up to you, buddy. I know you can do it."

 **To be continued…**


	36. S0 E31: The Time of Reckoning Part 1

**BREAKING NEWS**

"The war is turning. After several days of hard-fought battles all over the world, including the likes of Empire City and Soleana, Shadow the Hedgehog and his team, along with the rest of the Guardian Units of Nations, have successfully driven the forces of Infinite out of all major cities. After a long battle on the streets of Spagonia, Knuckles the Echidna, General of the team and former Commander of the Resistance, had this to say."

Knuckles appears on the screen, appearing a bit bruised from battle, but giving a confident smirk. "Yeah, that's right. We're gonna show that masked jerk what for. And when we're done with him…" He pounds a fist into an open hand. "…Eggman's next." He points directly into the camera. "So you listen here, and you listen good, Eggman. We've had enough. This time, you won't be getting off easy. This time, you're getting what's coming to you."

With the press of a key, Eggman closes the news feed on his screen. "Keep dreaming, Echidna." He looks instead to another window of footage on the screen, live security footage of the Titanic Monarch outside. A large panel on its front appears to be open, and heavy machinery all around of it seems to be lifting a giant object up to the open hatch bearing the distorted, pulsating yet unmistakable glow of a Phantom Ruby prototype. Eggman zooms in on the footage, getting a better view of Heavy King, standing next to the massive gemstone almost as large as he is. "We'll see who 'gets off easy'. Ha ha ha ha ha!"

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 31**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 5: The Time of Reckoning**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **The GUN CLIP**

"I'm sorry, but…it really wouldn't be proper of me to recruit such a young child." The GUN Commander scratches awkwardly at the back of his head.

In front of him, Cream the Rabbit pouts angrily, "But what about Charmy and Tails!? You let them help! I wanna help too!" In the corner of the room, Cheese the Chao appears to be engaged in conversation with Bruno the Wisp. Based on Bruno's movements, he appears to be telling a story about some sort of battle, which has Cheese quite excited.

The Commander continues, "Both of them have prior war experience, but you weren't there. I'm sorry, I can't allow it."

Amy steps up beside Cream. "Come on, Commander. Cream's gone with us on adventures more than once, she can handle herself just as well as those two."

"I…"

Tails steps in, addressing Cream directly. "Cream, maybe you can help us out by staying back here and keeping us coordinated, instead of going right into battle." He looks up to the Commander. "…Assuming that's alright?"

"I suppose…as long as she stays here at the base…"

Cream cheers, "Yay! You hear that, Cheese? We're gonna be Generals!"

"Chao chao!"

Cream turns back to the Commander, and gives him a little bow. "Thank you, Mr. Commander sir."

Tails beckons to Cream. "Come on, let me show you how some of these computers work."

The Commander mutters, "I didn't say you could be a _General_ …"

Amy smiles up to him. "Lighten up, Commander. You said it yourself, Charmy and Tails have experience. Don't you think it's about time Cream gets some too? You did say we needed all the help we can get."

The Commander doesn't smile back. "It's hard enough running a military without being in charge of a little girl."

Amy gasps. "You don't really mean that, do you?"

"I'm…just worried that something might go wrong. It's happened to me before."

While Cream practices with the computer, Shadow pulls Tails aside. "How much time do we have left?"

"Well…it all depends on how many prototypes Eggman makes, but…we should probably have at least a few days left."

"Worst case scenario?"

"Worst case, it could start any time now."

"So we need to get moving."

"We still have all the same problems we had before, maybe even worse. Blacklight is putting every ounce of the Ruby's power into defending the last of his territory, and that power is still growing thanks to Eggman."

"Assuming there's any part of Blacklight still left in there."

Knuckles steps up beside them. "The longer we wait, the worse things are going to get. It's now or never. Against defenses like that, it looks like an all-out attack is our only option."

Infinite shakes his head. "It's still a suicide mission. I thought the point of waiting this long was to _improve_ our chances."

Chaos the Hedgehog steps up to the holographic globe in the center of the room, answering, "That may yet still be true. I don't believe the time is right. Blacklight is becoming desperate, he will soon make a move, I'm certain of it. That will be our chance."

Everyone starts to gather around the holographic globe in the center of the room for the impromptu meeting. Tails adds, "It's all about finding that chance. We don't need to beat his entire army, we just need to get the Ruby away from him. Shadow…do you think there's any chance you can get through to him, get him to give up the Ruby willingly?"

Shadow sighs. "It isn't likely. But if I can make him realize it's controlling him, he'll want nothing to do with it, I'm certain of that. And there just might be a way I can do that."

Infinite looks him in the eye. "And when you fail?"

"Then we'll have to fight."

Vector shakes his head. "That's if we even get that far. We may not have a better option, but…I don't like our odds."

Tails answers, "We just have to have faith in each other. Together, we _can_ do this. We _can_ save the world."

The door behind them hisses open. On the other side, Hero the Wolf, bandaged and supporting himself against the wall, gives a nod and a grunt in affirmation.

The room becomes filled with shouts of "Hero!" and "Rookie!"

Bruno is the first to make it to him, bouncing around him and squeaking with uncontrollable excitement. Overcome with emotion, Hero embraces the little alien, wrapping it up tightly in his arms.

Tails makes it to him next as he lets go. "I can't believe you're awake, h-how did you get out?"

Behind him, Knuckles clamors, "What was it like, what did you see?"

Vector greets, "Good to see you for real this time, Rookie."

Infinite mutters quietly, "You never cease to surprise me, kid."

Hero's only reply to all of them is to turn over something in his hand. A glittering blue Chaos Emerald.

Shadow looks at it in confusion. "Where did you get that…?"

Amy nods slowly in understanding. "Sonic…"

Espio questions, "If you're here, does that mean Sonic is…?"

Hero shakes his head.

Knuckles looks over to Vector. "Either way, I think our odds just got a bit better."

Chaos gently shakes his head. "Better odds don't make rash actions a safe bet. We still have to wait for Blacklight to make a move."

Shadow objects, "We can't wait any longer. Every moment we wait is a moment closer to the Ruby destroying everything."

Rouge counters, "You're talking about rushing straight in, setting off every alarm, getting every defense he has on us at once. We won't even _get_ to the Ruby that way. If there's a chance for us to take advantage of his mistakes, we need to wait for that to happen."

The Commander crosses his arms. "That's assuming he makes any mistakes. Strategically, he's best off exactly as he is, and we have no reason to believe he doesn't know that. And that assumption is based on what?" He looks over at Chaos. "Your _hunch_ that he'll slip up?" Next he looks to Tails. "Your _guess_ that we still have the time to wait at all?"

Tails shakes his head fervently. "It's not a guess, I've done all the calculations, Eggman would have to be producing prototypes on a _massive_ scale for anything to go wrong any time soon."

Shadow growls, "We aren't getting anywhere debating like this."

The Commander responds, "You're in command here, Shadow. The final decision falls to you."

Shadow looks down to the ground, thinking for a moment. He looks back up to Chaos.

Chaos, fur colored green in fear, pleas, "We cannot attack now. If we do, it will only result in disaster."

Shadow nods slowly as he comes to a decision. "Alright…so we'll put it to a vote."

The Commander questions, "A vote? That isn't really proper protocol in–"

Shadow cuts him off. "Who says we should wait?" Immediately, the hands of Chaos, Tails, and Rouge go up, followed by Amy, Cream, and even Infinite. After a moment of hesitation, Hero's does as well. Shadow nods as he finishes the count. "And that we should go now?" Omega, Knuckles, the Commander, and all three of the Chaotix raise their hands. Shadow nods again. "With me, that's seven votes each. A tie."

The Commander seems satisfied. "Well, since the two ranking officers here are on the same side, I suppose that means–"

Shadow cuts him off again. "No." He looks over to Tails. "You started this team." He turns to Chaos. "You convinced him to do it. And if Sonic were here…I think he would agree with both of you. So that settles it. We wait for Blacklight to make the next move."

The Commander sighs. "Well…if that's your final decision…"

"It is."

"Then I guess we all have some spare time on our hands. Everyone is dismissed."

Shadow immediately heads for the door. "I'm going to meditate." With an odd look after him, Chaos follows. Many of the rest begin to file out the door. Tails and Cream stay by the computers, while Rouge and Omega stay to monitor the tactical readouts.

The Commander looks over to Hero, who still leans back against the front wall. "Can I have a word with you, Hero?"

Hero nods and slowly walks over.

"I know you've been through a lot over the past few days. How are you feeling?"

Hero rubs a bit at his bandaged wound, but gives a smile and a nod to indicate his readiness.

"That's good. I've looked into your record, I know that you're an excellent soldier. It's always worth celebrating when a good soldier comes home alive."

Hero scratches at the back of his head a bit, but doesn't refuse the praise.

"I've been through plenty of hard-fought battles in my day. You were…effectively captured, tortured by the enemy. I know how that can get into someone's head. I just wanted to make sure…you'll be able to keep your head when the next battle comes."

Hero gives a confident nod.

"Excellent. Now, I know you've technically been asleep for a few days, but I would suggest you get some proper rest."

Hero nods with a smile. After a moment, he puts up a salute in respect.

The Commander returns the salute. "Good luck, soldier."

—–—

Shadow sits on the floor of a dim room, eyes closed, meditating. Five Chaos Emeralds are arrayed out on the floor in front of him.

The door to the room hisses open, letting light flood into the room. Chaos the Hedgehog stands in the doorway, oddly silhouetted by the light. "Forgive me for intruding, but…I overheard your desire for meditation. I was wondering if I might join you?" The light in the room reveals a neat, stiff-looking bed that doesn't appear to have been used recently, and a flat metallic desk with just a single object placed on top. A shiny gold medal, propped up on a metal stand. This appears to be Shadow's quarters.

Shadow sighs, but doesn't open his eyes. "Do what you want."

Chaos nods obligingly, and steps into the room, the door closing behind him and cutting off all light but that from the Emeralds. He takes a seat across from Shadow, and assumes a meditative stance. "I wish to tell you something. I very much respected the command decision you made out there. Any leader might have taken their own position as a final verdict, seeming reasonable for offering the vote at all. Instead, you took into account the voice of he who could not speak for himself. There is much about you that surprises me."

"I did what made sense. What I think doesn't matter any more than anyone else. I'm no expert on the Phantom Ruby, but Tails has at least studied it."

"How much _do_ you know about the Phantom Ruby?"

Shadow at first opens an eye slightly to give an irritated glance at the continuing interruption. But then he answers, "Only what it can do. We don't know what it is, where it came from, or why it's here."

Though Shadow doesn't ask anything, Chaos answers as if he had, "Yes, I do know…some. In battle against it, the Ruby's energy caused me great pain. Something about it is…somehow incompatible with what I am."

"Incompatible?"

"The Phantom Ruby…it is filled with an energy…that is much like Chaos. There is much Darkness within it, but there is also Light. However…where a Chaos Emeralds contains a harmonic balance of these energies, the Ruby is…discordant, perhaps, anarchic. As if at war with itself in each passing moment."

"Blacklight is a lot like that himself. That explains why the Ruby works for him."

"I see…" Chaos goes silent for a few moments. "But still, I wonder…" His hand goes up to the spot on his chest where his Moonstone normally lies. "…if he is anything like myself."

"He's a lot more like me than he is like you. Trust me."

"Of course." He goes silent for a while longer. "Shadow…there is so much turmoil in your heart. I must know…what are you thinking?"

Shadow goes for a few moments without answering. "I can't stop thinking…about the chance that we might still be able to get Blacklight on our side."

"Do you really think that's possible?"

"I don't know. He's just so…confused. At war with himself, that's what he said to me. He barely even knows what he wants for himself. Maybe, if I can help him find that, we won't have to be enemies anymore."

"And what about yourself? What about the war in your _own_ heart?"

"…You're right. I don't know what I want either. I want to save him, and I want to _destroy_ him, and I want nothing to do with him. I want this all to be over with, but then I don't know what I'll have left when it's done. But I can't let any of that get in the way of the mission."

Chaos takes a moment to think. "The future…moves in predictable ways. Never certain, but always predictable. But for you…something is different. When we had our first encounter, I saw only a heart of Darkness. But…there is something more. I still don't know how to explain it. You…are not bound, as others are, to your own nature. With all my power, I cannot see who you will become. I imagine it must be even harder for you. But, for whatever comfort it might bring you, you can be whoever you want. Your future is entirely up to you."

"Hm."

"What's that?"

"It's just…you sound a lot like someone I used to know."

"Well…it sounds like you have a lot of respect for this person. I am honored."

"I figured out a long time ago that I can determine my own destiny. Now I just need to determine it. On my own."

"If I might ask another question…?"

Shadow groans a bit. "Why stop now?"

"You have so many friends out there. People who care about you. But here you are, trying your hardest to be alone. And somehow, I don't think that will change when this is all over. If you can choose who you want to be…why do you want to be alone? Why do you keep others away?"

Shadow takes a while deciding how to respond. "A long time ago, I lost some people who were close to me. I don't want something like that to happen again. So I keep my distance." Still never opening his eyes, he shakes his head. "I don't know why I'm telling you any of this."

"I appreciate your honesty. And…I am sorry about what happened to you. An event that can drive even the purest heart to Darkness. You seem to be managing yourself quite well, all things considered. But…if the Controller has taught me anything in my time with him…it is that you cannot live in constant fear of the Darkness. And that friendship is something…not to be squandered. But of course, only you can decide how to live your own life." Chaos only pauses for a moment. "Do you meditate often? Based on the Controller's reaction to my suggestions, it doesn't seem to be a common practice."

"I once lost my connection to the Chaos Emeralds. I started meditating as a way to find that connection again. It didn't work. But I figured out that it helped me focus. So when I got Chaos Control back, I kept doing it."

"Certainly a sound practice. If only the Controller had as sound judgement as yours."

"Why don't you just call him Sonic?"

"Well…it's a habit, I suppose. For eons to me, the Controller had many names, but was always just the Controller. That fact did not change simply because I came to this world to protect him. Protect him from…–" He suddenly gasps, opening his eyes on Shadow. The light of the Emeralds reflects curiously over his eyes. "…from you." He suddenly stands, taking a step back as fur turns a fiery red to match the Emerald on the center of the floor. "Of course, I see it now! _You_ are the Outlier!"

Appearing quite irritated, Shadow finally opens his eyes all the way. "What are you talking about?"

"You said it yourself, you aren't _natural_. You are _outside_ the Flow of Chaos, the Balance of the universe doesn't account for you! You changed the course of the future! You are responsible for Sonic's death!"

Shadow stands as well, taken aback by the accusation."What!? Sonic is alive, he's still trapped in the Virtual Reality!"

"Oh yes, he is still alive." Chaos' fur slowly shifts to vibrant yellow. "And I intend to keep him that way. The reason I came to this world was to protect the Controller from _your_ interference. You aren't supposed to matter in the scheme of the universe. And I will ensure that you don't."

Shadow raises his arms in preparation for a fight.

Chaos lets out a sigh as he shakes his head as if in disappointment, as his fur reverts to its neutral white. "Calm yourself, Outlier. You are wise leader, seeking to end this war just as I am. I will continue to fight by your side. To follow your orders. But if you ever come near the Controller again…you will answer to me." He turns to the door, and it automatically opens for him, flooding light into the room once again. "I will meditate elsewhere. I'm sorry for disturbing you." If the color of his fur changes at all, the silhouetting light makes it impossible to tell.

—–—

"Chaos was right, everyone. Blacklight just slipped up." The groups has once again gathered around Knuckles at the globe display, showing the newest update in the war. Knuckles steps back, letting the Commander continue.

"Blacklight's forces are making a plunge straight into the heart of Eggman territory." As he speaks, he shows a part of the map where yellow is jutting out into a large mass of red. "He is most likely trying to take out Eggman in one swift strike, leaving only us to deal with later. But he's left himself extremely vulnerable. He's already surrounded by Eggman's forces on almost all sides. If we cut him off from behind, he'll be trapped."

Shadow is the first to comment. "This isn't a normal war we're talking about, Commander. His troops don't need supplies, and he can make his own reinforcements. Trapping him makes little difference."

Vector replies, "We'll at least be able to take his Capital while he's away from it. If he retreats, he won't have anywhere to go back to."

The Commander agrees, "I think we can handle that, as long as this team takes care of Blacklight himself."

Shadow nods. "That still leaves one more problem. Even if we beat Blacklight, then we'll be the ones stuck in the middle of Eggman territory."

Knuckles responds, "Good. Then Blacklight will be saving us work. Once we're done with him, we'll already be knocking on Eggman's front door."

Chaos comments, "This certainly isn't an ideal situation, but we can agree it is the best we can hope to get." Many nods are made in agreement.

Near the back of the room, Hero stares with curiosity at an odd violet particle, which rises slowly through the air. He looks down to the ground, at what appears to be a very small hole in the floor, the edges of which have a similar violet glow, and appear to be leaking more of the same particles. Amy, noticing what he's looking at, questions, "What is that?"

Heads turn to see. Tails, closest to it, quickly pulls out his Handheld and starts to scan it. He gasps. "Oh no." He looks up to Shadow. "I was wrong. This is it, Shadow. It's already starting."

Rouge questions, "What is it, what's starting?"

Shadow answers slowly, "The end of everything."

Murmurs of fear and confusion sound through the room. Tails starts to explain, "The damage to the Phantom Ruby has spread too much, through the connections of all the prototypes Eggman's making. The fractures in Null Space are opening up into fissures. And Null Space is sort of…leaking out."

—–—

In an odd, pinkish colored sky, another much larger fissure is open, clearly showing Null Space on the other side. Tails continues to narrate, "Null Space is as close to our dimension as it is to any other. So what's happening here is happening everywhere else." Beneath the torn sky of the Sol Dimension, Blaze the Cat stares up at the Null Space fissure with concern and composure. Beside her, Marine the Raccoon looks to have much less composure.

—–—

"Null Space has nothing in it. But that nothingness is what's coming out. Matter is being erased from existence, and that reaction is fueling the Phantom Ruby even more, making it exert more energy, spreading the damage and increasing the problem even faster." On what appears to be Angel Island, the younger Classic Sonic stares off at the horizon, where another large fissure lies. The Tails and Knuckles of his dimension step up beside him.

—–—

In Null Space, there are a countless number of fissures, most of which reveal concerned faces on the other side. Many of those faces appear to be other versions of Sonic. Some are taller, some are shorter, some with different colored fur, some with different numbers of spikes on their heads, some wearing strange outfits. One of them even has a scarf around his neck. "If we can't stop this, there will be nothing left in any dimension. The entire multiverse will be one giant Null Space."

—–—

Infinite comments, "At least if we fail, I'll go out in a poetic way."

Shadow objects, "We won't fail. We will get the Ruby, we will stop this from happening."

"You mean, _I'll_ stop this from happening. Only I know how to repair the Ruby."

"We have to win this battle first, and now we have to do it fast. Knuckles, if I'm busy dealing with Blacklight, then I won't be able to give orders, so I need you to be Field Commander. Cream, you're staying here with the Commander to help coordinate, like you talked about. Everyone else, we're on the front lines. Everyone ready?"

A chorus of "Ready!" replies.

"Then let's go."

—–—

Backed by Chaos, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Rouge, Omega, Vector, Espio, Charmy, Hero, Infinite, and an army of GUN soldiers, human and animoid alike, Shadow stands ready to lead the charge against the horde of Replicas that stand opposite to them, including Zavok, Metal Sonic, Chaos 0, Mephiles, and countless of Blacklight's shadowy minion creatures. Blacklight, still bearing the mask of Infinite, and the intensely-glowing Phantom Ruby, floats high above them, slowly drifting down until he stands before his army just as Shadow does. He speaks with a strange, distorted voice overlaid with his own, "So good to see you again, Shadow. We were wondering how long it would it would take you to take our bait." The air is filled with glowing violet particles, drifting out from Null Space fissures all around. "And we see that you brought all your friends. That will make them much easier to destroy."

Shadow at first seems surprised at the coherence of Blacklight's thoughts. "Blacklight…is that still you?"

Blacklight laughs softly. "Of course it's us, Shadow. Who else would it be?"

"Us? You and who else?"

"No one else. Just us." He places his hand over the Ruby. "We are one, now."

"No, no, don't you see it!? That Ruby is taking over your mind! But it's not too late to fight it! You have to fight it!"

"Fight it? Why would we want to do that? We were always destined to be together, don't you see it, Shadow?"

Behind Shadow, Infinite growls and clenches his hand around his blade.

Shadow responds, "What happened to the free spirit, who hated rules and wouldn't listen to anyone but himself!? Isn't he still in there!?"

"Yes…and no. Besides, we still listen only to ourselves. Hence, why we aren't listening to you now. So we would suggest you stop wasting your time. That is, if you still intend to stop us."

Shadow closes his eyes and sighs, ready to take his last shot. "I have something for you."

"What's this? A gift?"

"That's right." Somewhat hesitantly, Shadow pulls something out and holds it up high for Blacklight to see. It's a shiny red apple.

Blacklight gasps. "Is that…could it be?"

Shadow nods encouragingly. "I brought it for you. Just you. I thought you might enjoy it."

"Shadow…that really means a lot, you know?" Slowly, Blacklight starts to lift his mask, revealing a genuine smile underneath. But, halfway up, he seems to change his mind, and lowers the mask back down. "Only two thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine more before you've repaid your debt to us." He directs out a hand, and a violet glow is cast over the apple in Shadow's hand. With the flick of a wrist, the apple is plucked out of Shadow's hand with the Ruby's power, and drawn into Blacklight's. He lifts his mask up again, just high enough to take a large bite. "Hm. Not bad."

Shadow lets out another sigh, realizing that there will be no easy way out.

Through a mouthful of apple, Blacklight continues, "Well, what will it be, Shadow? Who will make the first move?"

Behind Shadow, Infinite suddenly shouts, "We will!" Sword drawn, he charges alone out of line. Immediately, Hero runs after him, raising his Wispon in preparation to back him up.

Blacklight merely laughs, extending his arms wide as a command for his entire army to charge in response.

Knuckles looks back to his own army. "What're you all waiting for!? Let's go!"

Havoc quickly erupts on the battlefield. Countless bursts of weapon fire are unleashed from both sides as the armies collide in the middle. The heroes quickly break off into groups as they fight. The Chaotix battle with well-practiced teamwork, focusing on one target at a time and making successive attacks that break any enemy's guard. Rouge and Omega fight back-to-back, expertly balancing skill and power. Tails, Knuckles, and Amy show off years of friendship, wordlessly communicating to pull off well-coordinated attacks.

Infinite is the first to reach Blacklight, leaping at him with drawn sword. Not even taking his eyes off of Shadow, Blacklight makes a swatting motion with his hand, releasing a directed energy wave that knocks Infinite back to the ground. Hero comes in just after him, firing a grappling wire in an attempt to ensnare him. Blacklight grabs the end of the wire and uses it against its wielder, twirling Hero around through the air before slamming him back into the ground.

Finally, the moment Blacklight was waiting for comes as Shadow moves in for an attack. Before Shadow makes it within a few feet of him, he casts out a negative energy pulse that freezes him in the air. But before he can do anything further, he is suddenly struck by a bolt of green energy, fired by Omega from afar. He deflects the next two bolts with his hand, but the distraction leaves Shadow free, letting him land a solid Spin Attack.

Blacklight is knocked back, only to find himself on the wrong end of Amy's hammer. He zips out of the way of each of her successive swings, then knocks her back with a wave of his hand. She quickly picks back up in the battle with Tails and Knuckles against the Replicas.

Blacklight quickly looks around, trying to catch sight of Shadow again.

Taking advantage of Blacklight's confusion, Chaos shouts, "Chaos Spear!" He hurls the spear of light at Blacklight, which he deflects with a hand.

Across from Chaos, Shadow looks to him with surprise at seeing his own move used by another. But he quickly shakes it off, throwing his own "Chaos Spear!"

Shadow and Chaos trade off, alternately throwing their spears of light, slowly drawing in on Blacklight as they do, but he skillfully deflects them from both sides, though appearing to grow more irritated by each one. Suddenly, he turns and throws out a hand, just in time to freeze in place a cluster of small shuriken stars, thrown at him from behind by Espio.

While his head is turned, Chaos successfully lands a Chaos Spear, which explodes on impact. Shadow looks especially surprised by this.

Enraged, Blacklight shouts, "Enough distractions!" With his shout, the Phantom Ruby releases a powerful negative pulse with an overwhelming sound, just large enough to encompass Shadow and Chaos, lifting them from the ground as if gravity had been turned off.

Undeterred, Infinite leaps into the bubble of negative space along with them, shouting, "You won't get away that easily!" Hero is close behind him.

In another moment, the bubble collapses down on itself, and all five of them are gone.

A murmur spreads through the crowd. Knuckles shouts, "Don't stop now! We need to keep moving until we get to Eggman!"

The murmur is replaced by a cheer as the heroes move back into battle.

—–—

The negative pulse fades as Shadow, Chaos, Infinite, and Hero are dropped onto the metal grated floor. Blacklight drifts down to the floor in front of them. "Ah, so good to be home again. We've really become quite fond of this place. Though it appears we've brought a few stragglers along with us."

The other four climb back to their feet. Chaos clutches at his head as he does, clearly in considerable pain. Shadow takes a moment to look around. Though they are near a cliffside leading off to the ocean, the crumbled archways, neon lettering, and golden statue in the distance make the location unmistakable as what remains of Eggmanland. The slow annihilation of space is perhaps even more prevalent here. He looks back to Blacklight, who waits patiently for a response. "So, this is where you've been hiding out? You took this place from the Doctor?"

"Took? No, this territory belongs to us legally. Eggmanland is an official country, remember? Old Mustache was its ruler, but he abandoned the place. We are the only other citizen. That makes us the ruler."

"Well, look around you! Your _territory_ is disappearing from existence, just like the rest of the world! That Ruby is damaged, and if we don't fix it, you won't have a universe to live in, let alone a territory! You have to stop this fight and give it up!"

"Did you say…damaged?"

"That's right. It was caused by some sort of reaction with the Chaos Emeralds. You remember, don't you? Back when you still had control over your own thoughts?"

Blacklight looks through his mask down to the Ruby on his chest, letting out an odd sort of half chuckle as if trying to make sense of something. He places a hand over the gem, and rubs down it slowly as he lets out another, more complete chuckle. He doubles over as his chuckle rapidly builds into a hysterical laughter. "Ah ha, ha ha, ah ha ha ha! You… ha ha… you actually think that we're _damaged_!" He points at Shadow as if at a clown. "Ha ha ha ha ha!"

Infinite shouts angrily, "This is no laughing matter! Your use of the Ruby is destroying it!"

Blacklight instantly stops his laughter. "Oh, shut up, Ugly. No one asked you." He looks back to Shadow. "Oh, Shadow. Shadow, Shadow, Shadow. Poor, poor misguided Shadow, trying to save us from a threat that _doesn't exist_. I can't believe you're actually foolish enough to think that what's happening here is an _accident_." Gasps are let out all around.

Blacklight continues, "That's right. Could you not realize it before? Our first encounter with the Chaos Emeralds…part of us, you understand…is what trapped us in that other dimension. It was Alfred who did it, we can now see with our combined memories. That Mustache used the Chaos Emeralds to send us away. So we plotted our escape. Fooled the denizens of that dimension into uniting the Chaos Emeralds around us as they fought over us. And it worked. The Emeralds allowed us to come home. But we knew they could just as easily send us back. So as our next plot unfolded, we tried to keep them away. We failed. We were defeated. It's only thanks to Ugly over there that we weren't destroyed. We never wanted to see another Chaos Emerald again. And then Speedy came along. And though we despised those gems with everything we are, they granted us a gift we had never anticipated.

"You see, Shadow, our power has only _one_ limitation. And that limitation is this space that we exist in. We cannot access other times, we cannot access other dimensions, for those are only connected by the Flow of Chaos. But that all changed when Speedy used his Chaos Control while in contact with us."

Beside Shadow, Chaos finishes, "…Inadvertently linking you into the entire Flow of Chaos. Removing your only limitation."

"Exactly! At least _someone's_ catching on. Even with no understanding, no control over the process, our combined powers were able reset time itself. Each contact with that Emerald started the process over again. And each iteration strengthened our connection to the Flow. A few more times, and we might have gotten to this phase weeks ago."

Chaos nods. "Just as I suspected…"

Shadow objects, "This phase? The one where you _intentionally_ destroy everything that you've only just become connected to? Why would you do it?"

"Ugh, must we explain _everything_ to you? Think, Shadow, _think_! You were in a Virtual Reality, weren't you?" He glances over to Hero. "Come to think of it, weren't you as well? How _did_ you escape?" He shakes his head. "Nevermind, nevermind, forgot, you're Mute." He looks back to Shadow. "What were we saying? Oh, yeah. You were in a Virtual Reality. So tell us. Was it not real in every conceivable way?"

"Except that it wasn't."

"Our point exactly. The only difference between reality, and our creations, is the very existence of reality. Remove that barrier, and the _only_ world will be the one that _we_ create. There will be nothing more real than the reality we build from scratch. _We_ will be _God._ "

Infinite mutters quietly, "To burn down the old world…and build a perfect one in its place…" He suddenly shouts, "No, no, none of that is possible! You hardly even had a mind to plot with before we met! How could you know all of that about Chaos!? How did I not learn it from you!?"

"You speak an _infinite_ deal of nothing, Ugly. It is true that your…prototypes, were they called? Your prototypes…enhanced us. Expanded our influence in ways not possible before. But we didn't share _all_ of our secrets with you. Only what we wanted you to know."

Infinite clenches a fist. "It can't be…"

"Look we didn't take all of you here to chat. Shadow, listen closely. We wanted you here, alone, for one simple reason. We want you to join us. We want you to be a god like us. You're the only thing in this world near as perfect as I am."

Shadow and Hero glance at each other in surprise at Blacklight's use of 'I'.

"Well? Don't leave us hanging, Shadow. We even have a prototype for you to use. What do you say? We can turn back time together, build a perfect world, where we will get the respect we deserve. All your mistakes, all your sorrows, can be undone. All you have to do…is join us."

Shadow sighs. "There's only one mistake…that I care about undoing. And that's failing to stop you from becoming this _thing_. I'm going to fix it. Here and now."

"Hm. Pity."

Suddenly, Infinite shouts, "Take me instead!" Hero gasps, while the other two glare at him mistrustingly. He only glances back at Hero for a moment, before looking back to Blacklight. "Your new world order…let me be a part of it. Please. All that you want, all that I want, it's the same, I can help you! Listen to the Ruby, it will tell you that much is true!"

Blacklight only halfheartedly looks to Infinite. "What we know to be true is that you are wildly desperate for any power that you can get. That you would try to pull us apart the moment you got the chance. We don't like you. So no. You don't get to join us." He looks across to Hero and Chaos. "But what about you two? Since we're taking appeals anyways, wanna be gods?"

While Hero shakes his head, Chaos scoffs, "Ha! I'm already a god. You're just a madman with a rock."

"Ugh, you're all such buzzkills. Very well." He snaps his fingers. "Bubbles! I need you!" The other four tense up for a fight as a Chaos 0 Replica rises up from the ground beside Blacklight. "Let me see it." The Replica produces from its watery hand the dimly-glowing purple Chaos Emerald.

Shadow eyes it carefully.

Blacklight reaches out to take it from the Replica's hand. "Much obliged, Bubbles. You're free to go." The Replica dissolves as quickly as it appeared. Blacklight twirls the Emerald around in his hand.

Beside Shadow, Chaos questions, "What do you expect to do with that? The energy of the Ruby isn't compatible with that of the Emerald! You'll only hurt yourself trying."

"Yes, that was once very true. We were once afraid, even to touch this Emerald. But now…" He pulls the gem closer to his face. As he does, both it and and the Ruby glow and tremble slightly. "…we are connected. Now, we can touch it. Now…we can use it." Under his mask, his eye moves to Shadow. "Chaos Void."

In an instant, Blacklights one open hand unleashes a terrifyingly massive beam of black, shadowy energy, sparking and glitching on its edges with the aura of the Phantom Ruby. The heroes dive and scatter out of the way of the enormous beam, which slices through a large section of the cliffside they'd been standing on, sending rock and steel crashing down into the ocean below.

After a moment of shock at Blacklight's raw destructive power, Shadow quickly shakes it off, and races around to attack from another angle. Chaos matches his movements on the opposite side, while Infinite and Hero charge in from the front.

Blacklight takes care of Chaos first, flicking out a simple energy wave that's enough to send him crashing to the ground in pain. He turns back to his front at Infinite and Hero. "Chaos Void!" He unleashes another immense beam of darkness, which slices through the ground between them as they each dodge a different way, leaving an open chasm between them. As his attack disperses, he shakes off his arms with a grunt, as if he were injured by his own attack.

Hero attacks first, firing a stream of flames from his Wispon, which Blacklight easily blocks with a hand. Infinite leaps up for a slash with his blade, but Blacklight once again knocks him back to the ground with his free hand. But the distraction is enough for Shadow to land a solid kick right to Blacklight's face.

Blacklight's Infinite mask clatters to the ground, a new crack opened along the weld line running down its covered eye. Blacklight looks out with a snarl, clutching a hand over his face as if to hide it. "You little…"

Chaos looks with curiosity at the face half-covered by the hand, and from it to Shadow's own duplicate face. "Could it be…a second?"

Blacklight growls, "Fine! If you think it's fair to outnumber us, we'll play your game!" He dramatically waves a hand off in one direction, and a small army of shadowy minion Replicas form from the Ruby's violet aura. He makes the same motion with his opposite hand, creating another squadron of Mephiles Replicas on his opposite side. He waves both of his hands in the middle, generating yet another squadron, this time of what seem to be Shadow Replicas, with cold, blank eyes, and a few odd, sharp corners instead of natural curves. They appear to be Shadow Androids.

Infinite gives a vicious smirk. "Thanks for making this fun for me." He charges headlong into the cluster of Shadow Android Replicas, slicing and stabbing as he goes. Following his lead, Hero opens fire on the shadowy minions, while Chaos targets the Mephiles clones.

"Do you like it, Shadow? Being copied, we mean. It's just, it happens to you so often, we were wondering if it's something you enjoy." He indicates around at the three clusters of Replicas engaged in battle. "Does it help you to get a look at who you are? We ourselves do know a thing or two about being copied." He places a hand over the Ruby.

Shadow starts to reach for one of the rings on his wrist. "Look in the mirror sometime. You _are_ one of the copies."

"Was that…a joke? Ha! Ha ha! You just made a joke! Shadow, we're so proud of you! Still, we wonder. Why always you? What makes you so special, that everyone always wants more of you? We must know."

Shadow snaps off his Inhibitor Rings one after another. "Do you ever shut up?"

Blacklight gasps loudly. "Shadow, such harsh language! But, what can we say? Two minds, twice as much to talk about."

Shadow takes on a radiant golden aura as his energy is released. "I'm tired of talking." Chaos glances over from his battle with interest.

Blacklight activates his own violet Ruby aura. "Fine, fine, then we can just beat each other senseless, if that's how you want to solve your problems. Though…as we recall, it's our turn to make the first move." In an instant, Blacklight blasts at Shadow.

Able to react with just as much speed, Shadow blasts forward just as quickly, and the two collide in the middle, their auras flaring furiously as they force against each other for several long seconds. Finally, some sort of energy explosion between them forces them each back.

Blacklight doesn't seem concerned. He holds out a single hand. "Chaos Void." Instead of the usual beam, an orb of darkness forms in his palm. As the orb expands to a massive size he lets out another grunt with a grimace, before firing.

Shadow seems a bit more pressed. "Chaos Spear!" The larger than average spear of light penetrates the orb, and detonates a moment later, dispersing all of the energy. Shadow leaps forward through the cover of the distortions for another direct attack.

Blacklight merely laughs, putting out a hand for another negative energy wave, that once again freezes Shadow in place. This time, the others are far too occupied dealing with the overwhelming numbers of Replica Shadows to come to his aid. Blacklight draws Shadow closer to himself through the air. "Who is going to save you now, Shadow? No more interruptions, no more flukes. You have nothing left. We can finally destroy you."

As Blacklight speaks, Shadow slowly struggles, getting just enough movement to pull out his own yellow Chaos Emerald. "You forgot…one thing."

"Oh? And what would that be?"

"I made a promise…to keep the world safe from you. And I never go back on a promise! Chaos Shine!" Shadow's aura flares even brighter, as if shielding him from Blacklight's influence, as he unleashes a beam of his own, this one of pure, intense light. The beam blasts Blacklight backwards, freeing Shadow completely.

Blacklight simultaneously growls and mocks, "Oh, Shadow, never had an original idea in his life, had to steal it all from _me_!" Shadow looks up in surprise at another use of the singular identifier. "Let me just put you out of your misery! Chaos Void!"

"Chaos Shine!" The two immensely powerful attacks collide in the middle, mixing and swirling in a central sphere just as they always have. But Blacklight's attack, aided by the power of the Phantom Ruby, is considerably larger, and starts to push back against Shadow, drawing the sphere much closer to him as it fills with more dark than light. But as Blacklight puts even more force into the attack, the glitching around his beam starts to spread up his arms. He lets out a cry of pain as he tries to keep up the attack, but its size begins to fluctuate as Blacklight loses intermittent control over the combination of his two powers. Shadow redoubles his own efforts, and his beam of light pushes hard against Blacklight's, until the sphere where the two meet collides with Blacklight and bursts.

Blacklight collapses faceup onto the floor, his Emerald on the ground beside him. He tries to climb back to his feet, but Shadow steps on his shoulder to pin him down. Blacklight clenches his eyes as he tries to activate the Ruby, but its usual overwhelming sound only putters out with each attempt. He looks back up to Shadow, an appearance of sorrow in his eyes. "Please, Shadow… Please don't take us apart. We're all we have for each other. We don't want to be alone…" He lets out a few meek coughs.

Shadow's only answer is to reach down and wrap a hand around the Phantom Ruby. But for a moment, he hesitates. "…You always had me." With that, he tears the Ruby away. Blacklight's eyes roll back as he loses consciousness. Shadow quickly reaches down to gather his dropped Inhibitor Rings.

Infinite tears his blade out of the last fading Android Replica. "Perfect, now hand the Ruby over so I can fix its damage." He extends his hand out to Shadow.

Shadow snaps the last ring back on as his golden aura fades. Then he reaches down for Blacklight's dropped Emerald. "It isn't damage. It was intentional…"

"Well, whatever you want to call it, I'm the only one who can fix it! You have to hurry, we're running out of time!" He indicates the air out with his hand, which has become densely thick with violet particles.

"You expect me to trust you with this? After you tried to betray us? Tried to join his side?" He indicates Blacklight's limp form on the floor.

"I was trying to get the Ruby as quickly as possible, he said it himself! Are you really going to risk all of existence because you're still holding some grudge!? We had a deal, Hedgehog! I helped you get the Ruby away from him, now give it to me!"

"No…you don't intend to fix it… You don't even know how to fix it, do you? And you don't care. It was all just a ploy to get the Ruby, wasn't it?"

"I…I…"

Shadow turns to leave, Ruby still in hand. "Help us finish this war. Maybe I can still change my mind about you."

"What about your friend Sonic? What do you intend to do about him? You don't know the first thing about using that Ruby, you won't even be able to wake him up, let alone repair reality."

Hero looks to Infinite with an expression of sorrow and disappointment. Infinite catches his glance for just a moment, but that seems to be enough to change his demeanor. He goes silent.

Shadow already seems distracted. He stares into the depths of the Phantom Ruby in his hand. A distant voice sounds off in his head, _"We meet at last, Shadow… Your desire is as powerful as I had ever hoped. More tamed, yet far stronger than the other one. So many things that you desire… I can help you save your friend. I can help you do so much more…"_

Chaos shakes Shadow by the shoulder. "Shadow? Outlier, can you hear me?" He suddenly tugs away his hand with a grunt, as if burned by the physical contact. "The Ruby's energy, it's already taking him over."

Infinite growls, "Perfect, now I have to save _him_ , too. Just stand aside."

Contrary to Infinite's demand, Chaos steps directly in front of him, and blocks him with a hand from moving towards Shadow. "If he won't allow you to have the Ruby, then neither will I."

Through clenched teeth, Infinite responds, "I suggest you change your mind soon, unless you want to start this whole war over again. _He_ can't control the Ruby. _I_ can. And _he_ is running out of time."

In Shadow's head, the distorted voice of the Ruby continues to call, _"Everything you've ever wanted is at your fingertips. We can make the world exactly as you desire it. We can even…bring back the dead." In front of Shadow's red-hazed eyes, an image begins to form. An image of a young girl with long blond hair and crystal blue eyes._

 _Maria smiles and waves at him. "It's so good to see you again, Shadow."_

" _Even as you deny it to yourself, I see everything that you desire. Together, we can make it a reality. And crush all those who stand in our way."_

Shadow mutters quietly, "Together…" But there is nothing in front of him.

Infinite shouts, "Don't you see!? He's already succumbing!" Suddenly, he lifts his blade up to Chaos' throat. "I'll only ask once more. Get out of my way."

Chaos doesn't flinch in the slightest. "You are making a grave error."

"My greatest error was believing that I could actually benefit from siding with you lot of weaklings."

In an instant, Hero's grappling wire wraps around the Ruby in Shadow's hands, and tugs it away. At once, Infinite and Shadow shout, "No!" Shadow just as quickly recoils and looks to his own hands as he realizes what just happened.

Now, it is Hero who stares deeply into the Ruby in his hands.

Its distant voice sounds in his mind, _"Ah… I never expected to meet you again. You, who had the strength of will to overcome even my strongest influence. You need not fear me. You need my help, don't you? You wish to save your world. I can grant your desire. I will grant anything that you desire…"_

Shadow looks up from his hand to Chaos and to Infinite, realizing that there is no other choice. In the most encouraging voice he can manage, he turns back to Hero and commands, "Whatever the Ruby is telling you, don't listen to it! It's nothing but lies and illusions!"

Infinite instead demands, "Give the Ruby to me, before it's too late for you! I can control it!" Hero continues to stare silently at the gem.

Shadow looks from the Ruby, to himself, to the limp form of Blacklight still not far away, to the torn, violet-bleeding skies all around. "It can't be fixed… It can't be controlled… There's only one way…" He turns back to Hero. "Hero, listen to me! Forget about controlling it, you have to destroy the Ruby! That's the only way to save reality! You're the only one who can!"

Infinite objects, "Lies! Destroying the Ruby will make reality impossible to save! You'll doom us all!"

The Ruby continues in Hero's mind, _"I can help you save reality. I can… I can… urgh…"_ The Ruby begins to tremble in Hero's hands. _"What…what are you…?"_

"No… No, no, no! You have to stop this now! Give me the Ruby!" He furiously tries to shove past Chaos, but he is firmly held in place.

As the Ruby glows and pulsates intensely, Shadow watches with baited breath. Suddenly, a large crack forms down its side. It's followed by another. The Ruby rapidly becomes covered in spiderwebbing cracks and splinters, trembling furiously.  
"No…"

With one final loud crack, the entire Phantom Ruby collapses in on itself as it crumbles into sparkling dust, revealing a tiny Null Space portal inside, which, too, closes on itself, leaving nothing behind. All around, Null Space fissures rapidly seal themselves as the air finally clears of all traces of the Phantom Ruby's power.

"What have you done…? What have you done!?" With no Ruby left, Chaos no longer restrains Infinite, allowing him to dive onto the ground beneath Hero's feet. He runs his hands across the floor over and over, scrambling to find even the smallest piece of the Ruby. He finds nothing. Staring at the ground, he mutters, "You…destroyed my Ruby. There's nothing left. I'll…I'll kill you." He sharply looks up to Hero, a murderous glare in his eyes. " _I'LL KILL YOU!_ " He draws his sword and tries to stab upwards.

In a flash, Shadow appears beside him, striking hard enough to send him flying up into the air. In another flash, Shadow appears above him as he flies, pounding him down into the ground. Just as he bounces off of the ground, Shadow appears beside him yet again, delivering a powerful roundhouse kick that sends him flying back into one of the park's crumbling pillars.

Even injured, Infinite still struggles back to his feet. "I can't… I can't be weak like this for the rest of my life…"

Shadow seems ready to go in for a finishing attack. But he hesitates. "The day we first met…I called you pathetic. What you heard was 'weak'. But that was never what I meant. What I saw when I looked at you was someone who was squandering everything he had, taking every order from Eggman even to what might have been your own death, just for whatever meager payment he'd arranged with you. You lost complete control over your own life. And I never wanted to see your face again. Because I didn't want to see that worthlessness in myself. I don't know if I was right back then. But I know that I am now." He closes his eyes and shakes his head. "You aren't worth any more of my time." He turns to leave.

Hero looks to Infinite with deep sorrow.

With nothing but wordless snarl, Infinite leaps at Shadow from behind, blade drawn. Shadow turns and delivers a chop square to Infinite's head, causing him to collapse to the ground, unconscious.

Hero starts to lift his hand as if to reach out and help him. But after a moment of hesitation, he instead turns and looks down to the ground. Bruno pokes his head out of the Wispon in his hand. He looks around, and sees Infinite's form on the floor. He flies up to Hero's face, and gives a sorrowful squeak. Even with a saddened look in his eyes, Hero still gives a smile as he places his hand on the side of his Wisp friend. They both seem comforted by the touch.

Shadow gives a sigh. "Now we just need to take care of Eggman, and this war will be over."

Chaos steps up beside him. "Before we do…I must apologize to you, Shadow."

"For what?"

"I said some terrible things to you earlier today, founded only on my basest assumptions. I am now certain that I was wrong. You've shown immense heroism today. In the face of something that I didn't think was possible. I never could have imagined that there would be a second Outlier. It changes everything."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Were you alone in your separation from the Flow of Chaos, you would have only two choices. Live your life in absolute balance, never experiencing any Light that does not yield to Darkness, in essence, having everything you care about taken away from you. Or, create an imbalance that could offset the Balance of the entire universe. You did have that choice. But with another, that all changes. The two of you…can balance each other. So long as he holds Darkness in his heart, you are free to choose the Light. A choice few others are able to make. To change your very nature at a whim, as I saw the potential for in you before. You are truly something unique, Shadow the Hedgehog. There is much I could learn from you. But there is one thing that I know for certain. You could not possibly be the one responsible for the Controller's death. You may…even have the power to prevent it."

Shadow doesn't say anything for a few moments. "…We should get going."

"Wait!" Right where he was left, Blacklight is climbing back to his feet. As he does so, he wraps a hand around the Infinite-style scarf he still wears, and tears it away from his neck, letting it drop to the floor. The three heroes tense up for a fight as Bruno retreats back into the Wispon. Blacklight starts to limp his way towards them. "I don't want…to fight." Shadow looks to him quizzically. As he limps along, he pulls out a white Chaos Emerald, which he has apparently been holding onto all this time. "I have business…with the Doctor. So do you. I see this…as an opportunity." He steps right up in front of Shadow. "How about it, _mon ami_? Just once…we do this together." He lifts the Emerald up in front of Shadow's face. "The way things ought to be?"

Shadow stares him down for a long moment. Slowly, he lifts his own yellow Emerald up beside Blacklight's. He gives a slow nod as he agrees, "The way things ought to be." He even wears just the slightest smirk.

Chaos turns to Shadow. "Do you really trust him?"

"As long as he wants the same thing we do…yes."

Blacklight mutters grumpily, "I'm standing right here, you know."

Shadow takes a step back. "If you're going to stand with us, then it's time to prove it. We're going straight to the Doctor."

"So we shall."

Chaos interrupts, "Wait."

Shadow looks to him in confusion. "What is it now?"

"There's something I should warn you about, before we go into another battle. Those rings that you wear…they inhibit your release of energy, yes?"

"And taking them off might kill me, yeah, I've heard it before."

"No. Not might. Will. I sense the the flow of Chaos energy within you, and I can tell you that another release like the one you just experienced _will_ kill you. The longer you wait, the safer it will become, but you cannot take that risk today."

"But unless I take them off, I can't–"

"You will have to make do without that power, you don't have any other choice. You must promise me."

Shadow sighs. "Fine. I promise."

A soft voice calls out, "Shadow…" Shadow suddenly looks over to his side with surprise. Beside him, the image of Maria that appeared before somehow still seems to be there. She gives him a smile, and states softly, "Please…don't forget your promise, Shadow. Give everyone a chance…to be happy." Shadow reaches out as the image starts to fade away, without any of the usual Ruby haze. Shadow looks around. No one else seems to have noticed anything.

Blacklight goads impatiently, "Well? What're you waiting for?"

Shaking his head for a moment, Shadow raises his Emerald up high. Hero takes one last glance at the unconscious form of Infinite. "Chaos…Control!" In a flash, the four of them disappear.

Infinite, left all alone, slowly struggles to lift his head from the ground. Immediately, he turns to look beside him. Not far off, Blacklight's cracked mask still lies on the floor, facing him as if staring into his soul.

—–—

The war has pushed all the way to the outskirts of the great futuristic Metropolis. Knuckles slams a fist hard into a Replica Zavok, sending it flying back as it dissolves away. Tails and Amy cover him from the side, as Tails throws Amy down from the air into a Chaos 0 that targets him. She slams her hammer hard enough to destroy it instantly, creating a shockwave that knocks back several more Replicas behind it. But suddenly, they all begin to dissolve away, one by one. The battle quickly calms with murmurs of confusion.

Knuckles cheers, "They did it!" All around, Null Space fissures close and the skies clear of their influence. The whole army starts to cheer behind him. Knuckles continues, "Great work, everyone! But we can't let up now!" He dramatically points off towards the interior of the city. "Eggman is just ahead! Just keep going!"

—–—

Infinite's feet clank across the metal floor as he limps through the interior of the Eggmanland base. With each step, he mutters, "I can't… I can't… I can't…" In one hand, he still holds his Ruby Blade. In the other, he holds the mask he once called his own.

He comes to a stop as he reaches a polished glass chamber. "It's here… Just like he said…" He stares up in wonder at the pyramidal Phantom Ruby prototype that floats slowly around in a circle within the chamber. "Small… Simple, and uncharged… But it's still a Ruby. Still a chance." He suddenly strikes the glass, shattering into a thousand pieces with a loud clatter.

He drops the mask to the floor, and slowly reaches up towards the free-suspended gem with just a finger. But, just inches away, he freezes. Shadow's voice rings in his head. _"You lost complete control over your own life."_

He angrily shakes his head, retracting his hand. "I always thought…that fate controlled my life. That the Ruby was my one chance to break free. Could it be…that the Ruby controlled me all along? That my control was nothing but an illusion?" He looks down to the mask on the floor, then back up to the Ruby. Then, hesitantly, he looks to the blade in his hand.

Cautiously, he raises the blade into the air, letting the light cast his reflection in its side. He smiles at what he sees.

 **To be continued…**


	37. S0 E32: The Time of Reckoning Part 2

**BREAKING NEWS**

A live feed is shown of the war through Metropolis. On the elevated streets above just as the ground level far below, laser fire is traded between swarms of Egg Pawns and the GUN army, led by the New Resistance. In the sky above, a fleet of airships marked with the insignia of GUN fire on the fleet of red and orange Eggman ships. Knuckles leads the ground assault, many heroes right beside him. They work together to take down many of the largest Eggman robots.

A news reporter narrates, "In the aftermath of the cataclysm created by the one who called himself Infinite, the forces of GUN continue to push from their victory, and now engage Eggman's forces on the streets of Metropolis. And with Eggman's army pushed ever further back, a victory seems imminent. But still, the whereabouts of Sonic the Hedgehog are a mystery. If we're all fortunate, this will be the day he isn't needed to save the world."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 0, Episode 32**

 **Forces of Chaos, Part 6: The Time of Reckoning Part 2**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 **The GUN CLIP**

Cream the Rabbit sits at a high-tech computer system of the defense center, seeming to work quite efficiently. Suddenly, five large red blips appear on her screen, moving as if to converge on a center point. She reaches up for the communicator in her ear. "Excuse me, Mr. Knuckles? There're five big energy energy signs moving towards you. I think they're Dr. Eggman's robot Generals." One of the blips suddenly disappears. "Hold on, now there's only four."

The Commander steps up beside her and looks down at the screen. "One of them disappeared?"

Cheese confirms, "Chao chao."

The Commander straightens back up, contemplating for a moment. He reaches up for his own communicator. He states simply, "Put the base on high alert."

—–—

Shadow, Hero, Chaos, and Blacklight appear together on the rocky cliff face overlooking Eggman's Imperial Fortress. The air is completely still. Shadow looks off behind them, where irregular flashes and a few high-flying airships mark the battle over Metropolis.

Blacklight comments, "Looks like we're early."

Chaos questions, "Do you think Robotnik is even here?"

Hero glances over at him in confusion, apparently unfamiliar with Eggman's surname.

Shadow nods. "He wouldn't leave his base undefended."

"Right you are, Shadow!" Eggman's hovering Egg Mobile floats down from the sky. "Right you are." The craft comes to a stop in the air a fair distance in front of them. He looks across them with a glare. "Wait a minute…" He notices that Blacklight is among them. "You?"

"Hello, Mustache. How's your day been going? Hope you don't mind if we ruin it. I don't really like the way you tried to manipulate me while my brain was all screwy, you know? At least Shadow over here brought me an apple." He glances over at Shadow. "You don't happen to have any more of those, do you? I am _starved_."

Eggman shouts, "Enough! Since you didn't appreciate _my_ gift of a Phantom Ruby prototype, I think I'll show you just what they're capable of."

Shadow quickly looks over to Blacklight. "Prototype? Will that work now that the real Ruby's gone?" Blacklight gives a very emphatic shrug.

Eggman pulls out a handheld radio, and barks into it, "Magician! Time to pull back the curtain."

—–—

On the Metropolis battlefield, Heavy Magician is engaged in battle on the ground with Tails and Amy. Magician repeatedly flicks her wand in and out of her removed top hat, flinging out a new Caterkiller each time. Dealing with the long spiked robots takes far too much effort for Tails and Amy to get anywhere close to her. Eggman's command barks in her ear.

"You got it, Boss." She lifts her wand high above her head, and swishes it around a few times, generating puffs of sparkling smoke in the air, but otherwise seeming to do nothing. "All taken care of." Amy's hammer smashes down just next to her she dodges out of the way. "Hey, watch it!" Tails comes in for a sweeping attack with his tails, but Magician rises into the air to avoid it.

Magician looks over to her side, where a massive, darkly-colored, Pawn-like Heavy-Egg Hammer robot swings its namesake hammer back and forth, attempting to take out a large cluster of soldiers. They blast back at it, but can't seem to penetrate its armor. Magician looks back down to Amy and Tails. "So, y'all like hammers, do ya? Let me show ya what a _real_ hammer looks like." She soars over to the Egg Hammer and waves her wand over it, cloaking it in her signature sparkling smoke as she does. Suddenly, the robot starts to grow even massively larger than it already was. The moment it stops growing, it turns its head sharply to the side, locking its eyes on Tails and Amy. It charges at them, shaking the ground with each step, holding its hammer up high, easily large enough to crush them both at once. They're both barely able to dive out of the way in time, as its hammer smashes into the ground, cracking and leaving an immense crater in the ground.

Satisfied that they've been thoroughly distracted, Magician questions, "Shinobi, you almost ready?"

The deep, whispering voice of Heavy Shinobi answers back, "I have reached, my designated position. Soon, our enemies shall know the true meaning of darkness."

—–—

Cream continues to work at the computer in the GUN base, noting the positions of the various blips on the screen. Suddenly, the screen becomes filled with an intermittent static. When the static clears, the entire screen has gone red. "Excuse me, Mr. Commander Sir? I think something's wrong with the computer."

The Commander once again comes over from his work at the base's central holographic globe to bend down and look at Cream's screen. "That's no glitch, it's reading a massive energy signature." He straightens up and reaches for his communicator. "General Knuckles, come in! We're reading something highly unusual a few miles from your position, the Doctor is up to something! You have to–" He cuts off as the entire room suddenly goes black.

Cream squeals in terror through the pitch blackness.

The Commander continues, "General! General, do you read?" He lets out a growl. "Comm lines are down, power is out…" Some light returns to the room as he activates some sort of emergency handheld beacon. "Clearly, this is some sort of well-coordinated attack, planned while our defenses are at their lowest." He moves over to the back wall of the room. "Theys didn't even set off the proximity alarms." He slides open the panel in the wall, revealing the compartment full of dimly glowing, high-tech weapons. He pulls out a semi-automatic plasma rifle for himself. "If they've already infiltrated the base, we need to get out. We're completely defenseless in here." After a moment of hesitation, he picks a smaller weapon out from the vault, and offers it out to the little rabbit girl. "It will be dangerous, you'll need a way to protect yourself."

Cream stares at the high-tech gun with wide eyes. Cheese questions, "Chao chao, chao chao?"

"It's full of automatic safeties, there's no way you can hurt yourself with it. I don't expect you to use it unless you have to, but you shouldn't go without it. Trust me."

Cream shakes off her surprise. "No thank you, sir."

"No thank you?"

"Cheese and I can handle ourselves just fine, and we don't wanna hurt anyone."

Cheese agrees, "Chao!"

The Commander sighs. But he puts the weapon back in the vault and seals it shut. He offers her his light instead. "Fine. Just hold this, stay behind me, and follow my lead. And please, try to keep quiet."

Cream shouts a bit too loudly, "Right!"

"Chao chao!"

—–—

On the high elevated roads of Metropolis, Knuckles shouts into his radio, "Commander? Commander!?" He lets out a growl, and looks over to his side, where the Chaotix are fighting close by.

Vector pounds his fists down onto an Egg Pawn, crushing it completely, Espio throws three quick shuriken stars that each take out one more, while Charmy stabs his stinger into one's neck, causing it to collapse to the floor. Right behind them, Knuckles hits one hard from the side, sending it tumbling away as it collapses into pieces. Vector looks back to see him. "Thanks for the save."

Knuckles answers back, "No time. I just lost contact with base, I think they might need help."

Espio is quick to answer, "I can get there the quickest, I'll go."

Knuckles gives a brief nod in approval. "Do it."

With a quick nod of acknowledgement, Espio turns and leaps off, hopping between lower rooftops at impressive speeds.

"Losing one of your best soldiers, just to save an old man and a little girl? Not a very sound tactic, _General_."

Knuckles turns to face the source of the familiar robotic voice. "Egg Robo."

Just down the road, Heavy King stands tall, his staff once again repaired with a Phantom Ruby prototype mounted at its top. Heavy Rider waits at his side, mounted atop a souped-up Motobug, with a loud revving engine. King answers, "That's _Heavy King_ now."

"So you gave yourself a cute name to go with your new paint job? Must've forgot to mention that last time."

Vector questions quietly, "You know this guy?"

Knuckles answers back, "Oh, we go way back. Longer than you and I, actually." He looks back to Heavy King. "Speaking of tactics, yours sounds pretty low-down, even for Eggman."

King answers with a hint of pride, "Perhaps that's because it was _my_ plan."

"You here to brag or to fight?"

"So eager to meet your demise? Very well." He looks to the side. "Rider, you know what to do."

"Verily, my liege." Rider revs her engine even louder. "Ho, Jimmy!" Her mechanical steed accelerates forward rapidly, attempting to run right over Vector and Charmy. They dive out of the way as she rides on past them. After a momentary glance at each other, they chase off after her.

King watches them go as if they were children playing. "And so, that leaves only the two of us. Do you really think you can defeat me all on your own?"

"The way you keep looking at me, something tells me I already have. How did you say we last met in that other dimension?"

King takes a moment to answer. "Perhaps you aren't such an oaf after all." He raises his scepter in challenge.

Knuckles raises his fists in opposition. "I like to think I'm full of surprises."

—–—

Hero stares up in awe of the monumentally massive mechanical monstrosity that is the Titanic Monarch, appearing in a haze of Heavy Magician's sparkling smoke, towering above the Imperial Tower beside it. An appropriately massive Phantom Ruby prototype has been built into its chest. While Shadow and Chaos look with tempered surprise, Blacklight stands with his mouth gaping open. He looks over to Shadow. "Is it too late to switch sides?"

After a moment to realize that the question was meant seriously, Shadow answers sternly, "Yes."

Blacklight looks down to the ground in genuine disappointment. "Aww…"

Eggman lets out a hearty laugh, already flying off into the head of the Monarch. "Ah ha ha ha ha ha!" Moments after he's disappeared into the machine, his voice shouts through a powerful loudspeaker, "Like my new toy? If any of you want to surrender now…"

Blacklight starts to put his hand up, but Shadow grabs it and forces it back down. He turns out and shouts back to Eggman, "We won't let you take this world, Doctor! We will do everything in our power to stop you! For all the people of this world!"

Chaos adds, "For the Balance!"

Blacklight overdramatically continues, "For honor!" The other three all give him an odd look. "What, I had to say _something_. I wasn't just gonna leave you hanging after that."

The ground suddenly shakes violently as the Titanic Monarch takes a single step towards them. Eggman shouts from inside, "Enough foolishness! Prepare to be destroyed!" The massive robot starts to aim its powerful arm cannon. Its hand starts to rotate around rapidly as the energy inside it begins to charge. A few moments later, its intense, massive violet energy beam fires, obliterating the cliffside they were standing on.

—–—

Rouge and Omega appear to have taken their fight indoors. However, Heavy Gunner has not. Standing up in the cockpit of a large helicopter that circles around the outside of the building, he launches out missile after missile through the large windows. Omega fires out his machine gun, attempting to gun down as many of the missiles as possible in mid-flight, wreaking further havoc in the once-pristine white and green building interior.

Rouge kicks a rounded missile back where it came from, but the helicopter dives down low enough to avoid it, before lifting back up and firing again. The stray missile continues on until it impacts a an old, worn-out looking sign that reads 'HEXAeco', knocking it down from its skyscraper. Off in the distance, on the dusk horizon, there is a bright violet flash of light. Above Rouge's head, the lights in the building start to flicker and dim. She glances up, noticing it for just a moment. Then the new wave of missiles turns her attention back to the battle. When the flash in the distance subsides, the lights return to normal.

—–—

Treading as lightly and carefully as possible through the darkened hallway, the Commander holds his softly-glowing weapon in a protective stance, scanning back and forth as he moves along slowly. Behind him, Cream walks on tiptoe, shining the only major source of light in the room in front of them. Suddenly, the Commander stops, putting up an open hand. Cream freezes mid-step behind him. There is a simple metal door a few feet out in front of them. The Commander looks back at Cream silently as he closes his upraised hand into a fist. Cream obediently covers up the light, leaving the dim green glow of the Commander's weapon as the only way to see.

He flicks his hand forward, and they resume their tread even more cautiously than before. When they reach the door, the Commander stops again, putting his back up against the wall, and holds up three fingers. Then he switches to one finger, and starts counting up. When he reaches three, he quickly pushes the door open and comes out gun-first, finger ready to pull down on the trigger on a moment's notice. But it's all quiet on the other side.

The Commander lets out a sigh of relief as he relaxes a bit, and nods back to Cream to tell her to uncover the light. Now more properly lit, the room appears to be a large square-shaped stairwell, wrapped around a large empty space that reaches all the way to the bottom floor below and the roof high above. The Commander whispers, "There's an emergency exit a few flights up. We just need to–"

Cream gasps loudly as she shines the light up several stories above them, just barely missing a blur of movement. The Commander quickly moves a finger to his mouth, reminding her to be quiet. She covers her mouth with her hand as she realizes. The Commander looks back up to the direction where the movement came from. Pointing his weapon in that general direction, and motioning for Cream to do the same with the light, he starts to move slowly up the steps. Cream makes sure to stay especially close behind him.

Always facing the same direction, they slowly make it up a full flight, leaving the spot where movement was seen just above and across from them. Without pausing, they keep moving.

Suddenly, the Commander turns to face the opposite direction they've been focusing on, and opens fire, shooting a near-continuous stream of glowing green plasma bolts into what is quickly revealed to be an empty wall. As he stops firing, he lets out a quiet growl in disappointment at his incorrect anticipation of the enemy's movement. Behind him, Cream lets out a concealed scream in terror. The Commander turns around slowly to see the long, curved blade that Heavy Shinobi holds to her throat.

—–—

Hero swings down on his grappling wire to the ground below, carrying Chaos along with him. Shadow and Blacklight each separately land the great leap that would have certainly injured any normal person. Directly above them, massive rocks and boulders that made up what used to be a cliffside moments ago now tumble down towards them, forcing them all to scatter and dive out of the way to avoid being crushed as the rubble all crashes to the ground.

Chaos looks up to the obliterated cliffside and off to the Titanic Monarch, which has already begun charging for another shot. "So much power…"

Blacklight looks over to Shadow, holding up his Emerald. "I think we've wasted enough time here. Together?"

Shadow nods. "Together." Side by side, they take off at top speed towards the Titanic Monarch, skating in parallel to each other. Not quite able to keep up, Chaos and Hero run in behind them. Blacklight lifts his Emerald so that that it starts to orbit around him and Shadow as they run. One by one, it is joined by Shadow's six others.

The Titanic Monarch aims its cannon to encompass all four of them, and fires. While Chaos and Hero break off to opposite sides, Shadow and Blacklight pick up their speed greatly as the Emeralds tighten in orbit around them. The beam blasts into an empty spot between them all, creating a massive crater of destruction, but leaving them all unscathed.

Shadow and Blacklight move faster and faster along the ground as the Emeralds orbit tighter and tighter. Their feet lift from the ground, as one's fur takes on a golden-white hue and the other a pitch black, and they continue to soar along the ground even faster than before. The Emeralds are absorbed into them as the transformations of Super Shadow and Black Night complete. As they reach the feet of the massive mech, they break off and elegantly begin to soar up and around it in opposing directions, streaking their own auras behind them. The robot's massive arms swing in an attempt to knock them back, but they are far too fast for it.

Finally, they each come to a stop above opposite sides of the head, and after a moment, dive in at it. The Titanic Monarch crosses its arms as its hands spin around rapidly, as the robot's upper body generates a massive pulse of negative energy, overwhelming the assailants and knocking them back through the air.

Shadow clutches at his head in pain as he stops in the air. "Where is he getting that much power from…?"

On the ground below, Hero looks up to the very top of the Imperial Tower. He looks over to Chaos and points back to where he was facing.

"Above the tower? What's there?"

Shadow answers over the radio, "The sun!"

Chaos looks out to the darkening horizon in confusion. "The sun is…a bit lower than the tower, at the moment."

"No, during the last war, two years ago. Eggman's plan was to use the Phantom Ruby to drop a Virtual sun out of the sky." By the sound of his voice, he's thinking through as he speaks. "To do that, he needed to connect it to a power-generating facility, the Death Egg, so we destroyed it." His voice suddenly cuts off as, in the air, the tiny point of light that is Shadow swerves out of the way of another fire from the beam cannon. Once he's safe, he resumes, "But he had a backup plan, another power source. It was… It was Metropolis! The Metropolis Power Plant! That's where he's getting the energy to power this thing, that's why he's put all his other forces into defending it!"

Blacklight adds, "I always knew you were a smart one, Shadow."

Shadow continues, "If someone goes back to shut down that plant, this thing won't have a power source."

Chaos immediately nods. "I don't think I'm of much use here, I'll go."

"Find Rouge and Omega, we've been to that plant before, they can help you find it."

"Right." He puts a hand onto his chest, where a rainbow outline of his unseen Moonstone starts to glow. "Chaos Control!" He disappears in a flash.

Hero looks from the spot where Chaos stood, up to the two points of light and darkness that buzz around the Titanic Monarch like flies. With a resolute nod, he fires his grappling wire up towards the base of the Imperial Tower, preparing to make the long climb once again.

—–—

"Chao!" Cheese angrily latches onto Heavy Shinobi's face, causing him to stumble back without balance. Cream runs for cover as quickly as she can. The Commander sets his sights on the flailing foe, but hesitates in worry of hitting Cheese. A moment is all the Shinobi needs, as he grabs the Chao off of his face and forcefully throws it away. Cream jumps up to catch Cheese, making sure he's alright. His sights clear, the Commander opens fire. At an almost untraceable speed, Heavy Shinobi slashes at each and every bolt of plasma, dissipating one with each movement, and slowly stepping forward as he does. The Commander steps back to match, continuing to let off rounds as rapidly as he can, but soon finds his back against the rail out over many stories of empty space below. A moment later, his weapon starts to click as it stops firing, depleted of ammunition. Without the glow from the weapon or its flashing plasma, the room goes completely black, save for the dim red glow of Heavy Shinobi's eyes, and a much fainter violet glow that appears to come from the hilt of his blade, both of which continue to grow closer.

In one unseeable movement, the Commander tumbles over the side, falling into the black abyss below. A light shines on him as he clenches his eyes shut. His fall is stopped. He cautiously looks up with confusion to see Cream, holding him by the arm and using her ears to fly them up as hard as she can. Even with the strain, she smiles down at him. Cheese circles around them, holding the light that Cream dropped earlier.

His targets quickly rising up past him, Heavy Shinobi leaps up and perches on the railing, pulls out an Asteron, and throws it with expert precision.

Seeing the oncoming projectile, Cream flies off to the side, dropping the Commander safely onto the higher floor in the process. The Asteron embeds itself in the wall just beside them. But then the red light at its center starts to flash, before the device explodes, sending its four exposed spikes flying off in every direction. Cream and the Commander both gasp, neither of them in the position to avoid the surprise attack.

To a blur of motion and the sound of striking metal, the flying spikes are all struck out of the air. Espio lands in a crouch in front of them, reverse-wielding a kunai knife in one hand. He glances back them. "Everyone alright?" Still a bit in shock, his question is met with silent nods. He turns back to Heavy Shinobi, who glares at him from the opposite side of the stairwell. Suddenly, the two leap at each other, exchanging several blows with their blades before bouncing back where they came from.

Before Heavy Shinobi has even landed, he throws another Asteron. Espio crouches back on his rail only just long enough to push himself back, slicing through the projectile in the air and continuing on to confront Shinobi on his own platform. The two slash at such a furious pace that neither of their movements can be traced, Espio competing surprising well with his short knife against the Shinobi's long blade. But after a matter of seconds, the knife is flung from his hand, twirling through the air and sticking in the ground behind him. A strike from Shinobi's hand knocks him to the ground.

Heavy Shinobi stands over Espio, blade held out over him. "You have fought honorably, Chameleon. It is unfortunate that I am bound by my own honor, to end your life on this day." He prepares to strike. But in the air, his blade is met by another, similarly curved, but ruby red in color.

Staring Heavy Shinobi in the eye is the mask worn by Infinite, still with a wide crack running down its covered eye. The Phantom Ruby prototype lies securely on his chest. "You have something that belongs to me." He holds out his hand and fires out a small energy burst, striking Shinobi in the chest and knocking him back from the sword lock. While Shinobi clutches at the singe mark left on his chest, Infinite holds his blade out to the side. Glowing, sparking energy from the Ruby starts to spread down it, causing it to glow and pulsate just as brightly as the Ruby itself. "Don't bother surrendering. I'd much rather take it from you." He slashes the blade in front of him, generating a wave of violet energy that slices through the air towards the Shinobi.

Heavy Shinobi attempts to parry the slash wave, but the force of the attack knocks him back further. Changing tactics, he reaches behind him and takes out two Asterons to throw. Infinite generates two more slash waves to deal with each of them long before they reach him. But while he's occupied, Shinobi leaps up to the rails on the next story up, on the retreat. Infinite lets out a brief chuckle. Cloaked in the Ruby's energy, he flies up to slash at the Shinobi directly. Several blows are exchanged, before Shinobi leaps up again to yet another floor, throwing out more Asterons to cover himself. Infinite slashes through them and continues the upwards pursuit.

The Commander helps Espio back to his feet. Cream leans out over the rail, looking up to the battle above. "Mr. Espio…is he on our side?"

"I…I don't know." Espio shakes it off. "Come on, let's follow them." He runs the normal way up the stairs. Cream and the Commander run after him, having a hard time keeping up.

Now high above them, Heavy Shinobi lands on another rail, and immediately turns to prepare for Infinite's inevitable attack. But Infinite is already there, just a moment too fast for him. A violet slash lands. After a moment's delay, Heavy Shinobi's severed arm falls away from the rest of his body. In one swift movement, Infinite grabs the sword from the severed arm, letting the rest fall away, and plunges it into Shinobi's own chest. Infinite leans in, pressing his mask against Shinobi's shocked face. Beneath the mask, he could only be smirking. He gives the blade a twist, causing further internal damage. Then he floats back, drawing the sword back out.

Heavy Shinobi's eyes blink out and go dim as he topples from the rail he was perched on, tumbling uncontrollably as he sinks into the black abyss below. There is a loud crash as he hits the bottom. But Infinite never looks down at him, focusing on the upturned end of the hilt of the blade he took from Shinobi, where a small violet gem is attached. He snaps it off with his fingers, and drops the rest of the sword, letting it fall the way of its owner. He holds the gem up to the air, staring at it for a moment. Then it starts to glow and pulsate more intensely, as if its energy were being sucked into him. The moment it goes dim again, he suddenly crushes it to dust within his hand. "There can only be one." He unclenches his hand again, letting the sparkling dust slip between his fingers. "And it will be mine."

"Infinite!" Espio stands on the set of steps directly behind him. "Are you…"

Infinite turns his head sharply to look at him. Immediately Espio lets out a gasp. After a moment of silent glaring, Infinite turns his head back up, and darts away through the air.

Cream and the Commander finally catch up to Espio, both panting for breath. The Commander looks to Espio. "Where did he…? What is he…?"

Espio looks down to the ground in uncertainty. "That look I saw in his eye…it's the same that I saw two years ago."

Cream leans out over the rail, looking down to where Shinobi fell. Even for the enemy, there is a hint of sorrow in her eyes. "What do we do now?"

The Commander takes a few moments to think. "It could take them hours to get things running here, and we can't do any good while that's happening. We should join the battle." Cream looks up to him in surprise. He gives her a smile. "I know that you and your partner can handle it."

Cheese cheers, "Chao chao!"

On the ground level below them, far beyond where they can see, Heavy Shinobi's broken mechanical husk lies motionless on the ground. Suddenly, the machine parts become cloaked in an odd purplish light, which continues to grow brighter and more solid, until all is concealed by it. When the light fades, all signs of the Shinobi's presence are gone.

—–—

The Heavy-Egg Hammer twirls its weapon around in a massive circle of destruction, taking out a line of parked hovercars as it goes. Tails flies Amy up into the air to stay above the attack. Unable to spin any longer, the robot starts to flail its arms around as it loses balance. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Tails throws Amy down hard. With the full force of the throw, Amy slams her own hammer into the stumbling robot, sending it crashing to the floor. Its protective helmet tumbles off, exposing the flashing head module underneath. Tails come down onto the exposed head in a spin, denting and damaging it. As the robot tries to climb back to its feet, Amy follows up with another hammer strike straight to the damaged weak point, crushing in the robot's head and starting a reaction that causes the entire machine to fall to pieces.

Both looking fatigued, Tails and Amy share a high-five in celebration. Amy starts looking around in confusion. "Now, what happened to that other robot?" Two sliced halves of a familiar yellow top hat drop onto the ground in front of them. "Huh?" They both look up into the air, where Infinite triumphantly holds up another Ruby prototype, apparently having claimed it from inside the hat. Heavy Magician is nowhere to be seen. Infinite lets out a laugh as he crushes the gem in his hand.

—–—

Rouge and Omega appear to have moved to the rooftop of a tall skyscraper, still engaged in battle with Heavy Gunner, circling in his helicopter. However, now swarming around the building along with him is a horde of flying robots of a mixed variety, all firing various weapons which Rouge and Omega are barely able to avoid. Omega regularly gets shots off at some of them, but more seem to rise up to take their place.

After a moment to take aim, Gunner fires off a large rounded missile while both of his targets' backs are turned. It seems they have no chance to get out of the way. "Gotcha."

A figure appears in a flash, striking the missile to send it back where it came from. Gunner's eyes flash in surprise. An Egg Flapper flies up in front of him and takes the missile directly, protecting him from the brunt of the blast. But the shockwave still impacts the vehicle he flies in, knocking it off course and sending it spiraling downwards. Most of the robots fly down after it, and the few that remain are quickly dealt with by Omega.

Rouge nods in thanks to Chaos. Omega declares without prompt, "Assistance was not necessary."

Rouge glances over to Omega with a hint of irritation. "Do you ever stop?"

Chaos interrupts, "I wish I could say I came here to help, but we are experiencing difficulties of our own. The Metropolis Power Plant, where is it?"

"The Power Plant?" Rouge looks off into the city for a moment, thinking back. She points off in a direction where the white of the city gives way to much more green. "It's in the residential district, that way. Why?"

"We believe Doctor Robotnik is using it to fuel his Phantom Ruby, we must shut down the Plant as quickly as possible."

"Then we'll go with you, let's go." With that, Rouge leaps from the building, flying off in the direction she indicated. Getting a running start, Chaos makes an incredible leap all the way to the roof of the next closest building. He continues to leap that way from building to building to follow her. Omega makes the jump as well, firing thrusters on his back to carry himself through the air to the next building almost as efficiently.

Finally having regained control, Heavy Gunner rises back up above the rooftop in his helicopter. "Well, looks like we got ourselves a couple of runners. Readying pursuit."

In a violet flash, Infinite appears in front of him. "I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere." He delivers one powerful slash with his sword.

—–—

Riding on her steed Jimmy, Heavy Rider drives off over a lip on the elevated road, launching herself up into the air, as sparks and confetti fly as if from nowhere, before slamming back down onto a lower road, nearly flattening Vector and Charmy. Once she drives a fair distance away, she makes a sharp u-turn around, leaving skid marks on the road, and charges back towards them.

Without asking permission, Vector grabs Charmy in one hand, and hurls him as hard as he can at the oncoming assailant. As he flies through the air, Charmy points his stinger straight forwards, preparing to strike. In response, Rider pulls out a massive spiked medieval flail, and starts to swing it around her head. Apparently ready for this, Charmy manages to slip underneath the Rider's defense, and continues to stab straight into Jimmy's oversized wheel. After a moment of wobbling, the broken steed collapses over as it continues to skid across the ground at high speed, dumping Rider off in the process. Vector steps aside, allowing the broken Motobug to slide past him, all the way to the edge of the road, where it teeters momentarily.

Rider shouts with genuine fear, "Jimmy!" In another moment, it tumbles over the side, disappearing from sight. Rider lets out a growl. "Thou shalt pay for thy injustice! Jimmy, I swear I will avenge thee!" To prove her point, she slams her flail into the ground, causing it to shake violently.

Undeterred, Vector charges at the unmounted Rider. Rider charges back at him, swinging her flail around as she goes. As they're about to meet in the middle, she swings it down at him as hard as she can. But Vector, with all his strength, catches the spiked ball between two hands, careful not touch any of the sharp points. Rider lets out a gasping sound as Vector, still holding up the end of the flail with one hand, delivers a powerful punch right at Rider's center, sending her tumbling back.

Managing to land on her feet, but doubled over the large dent in her chest plate, Heavy Rider speaks into a communicator, "I have lost this battle. I must retreat." On command, she becomes cloaked in a harsh light, which quickly envelops her, until she disappears from sight.

Charmy flies up to Vector, still rubbing his head from the force of his impact. But still, he cheers, "We did it!" He starts to dance around in the air. "We did it, we did it, we did it!"

Vector rubs at his chin as he stares at the spot Heavy Rider disappeared from. "Yeah…but something ain't sitting right with me."

"Whaddaya mean by that?"

"The way she left, it was like they were planning on pulling out from the very beginning. But that could only mean…" He snaps his fingers as he deduces the answer. "…a distraction! They didn't want to beat us here, they just wanted to keep us away from something! And whatever it is, I bet we'll find out at Eggman's fortress! Come on, let's find Knuckles, we need everyone to start pushing forward!"

Charmy cheers, "Yeah!" Vector runs off in the direction they came from, Charmy following close behind.

On another section of road far beneath them, Infinite cuts the Phantom Ruby prototype free from Jimmy's broken husk. He holds it up to the air as he begins to absorb its energy. "Too easy."

—–—

Knuckles pants continuously, exhausted by the fight, still with fists raised. Heavy King looks down on him in disappointment. "I expected more out of you, Echidna. Not so full of surprises now, are you?"

"I…still got a few tricks left. How about I show you!?" Knuckles runs in on the offensive.

King merely laughs, and holds out his scepter, creating an arcing beam of energy that carves across the floor, erupting a wall of fire between them. Just as he did in the last battle, Knuckles uses the updraft from the flames to glide high into the air. Once above Heavy King, he dives straight down, prepared to strike. King strikes his scepter to the ground, generating a an electrified barrier to protect himself. But instead of attacking into the barrier, Knuckles impacts the ground just in front of him, so hard that it crumbles beneath his feet, sending him tumbling down to a lower street below.

With a wave of his scepter through the air, Heavy King's fall is immediately slowed as he is enveloped by Ruby energy. Though he does not fly, he is able to drift gently to the ground, his cape fluttering in the wind behind him. But the moment he touches down, Knuckles' fist slams into the side of his face. Chunks of metal fly off. King glares back at Knuckles, a portion of the side of his face missing and throwing out sparks from its internal wiring. The light in one eye has gone out. He swings his staff hard in anger, hitting Knuckles hard and knocking him a fair distance back.

King quickly regains composure. "Congratulations. You managed to lay a scratch on me. While you continue to tire out by the second. How much longer can you last?"

Another voice answers, "Longer than _you_ will get the chance to."

King raises his staff to a guarded position just in time to block the sudden slash from Infinite. The two meet single eye to single eye. King muses, "So, we meet again. Infinite, was it? I see you got yourself a Ruby after all."

The two separate, neither moving in to attack again. Infinite answers, "You and I both know that this is no substitute for the Ruby we both sought. But that is a futile cause, now."

"Are you saying…?"

"Destroyed. Imploded into its own void before my very eyes." Knuckles looks on in surprise.

Heavy King tightens his grip on his staff. "Gone…all for nothing…"

"No need to be so upset. We are much alike, you and I, I see that now. The Ruby chose you, just as it did me. It connects us, in a way. So…once I take the power from your prototype, I'll be happy to complete its task for both of us."

"You will take _nothing_ from us!"

"Us? Oh, you mean all of your other Heavy friends? I'm afraid you'll find that I already have."

"What!?"

"Oh, yes. Some barely fled with their lives. Others weren't so lucky. It's too bad they didn't show more fear. It was less fun that way."

"No one insults the Hard Boiled Heavies!" King fires his energy beam straight at Infinite.

Infinite fires back his own laser beam, colliding in the middle against King's. Waves of energy and heat are released from the center point where the two beams push against each other, forcing Knuckles to shield his face even from his distance away. But with a renewed push and a pulse of energy from the Ruby, Infinite's beam beats out King's, forcing its way to him and shattering the glass top of his scepter. His own Ruby rolls to the ground.

Infinite bends down to pick up his prize, as Heavy King struggles to get back up. Infinite raises the Ruby up to the air, and begins to absorb its energy. King moves to attack again. Knuckles dives in for a solid punch straight to his center, sending him sliding back to his knees, leaving a dent beneath the weld line in his chest plate. Still he uses his scepter to push himself back to his feet, shuddering and locking as if losing control of his own mechanisms. One step at a time he clanks his way back to his opponent. Before he ever gets there, Infinite's laser blasts through his lower shoulder, spraying shrapnel and leaving a hole clean through.

Barely able to move at all, King still shudders forwards, becoming cloaked in a harsh light. "N-n-no… I-I c-c-can still f-f-f-fight…" Against his wishes, the light grows brighter and brighter, until he vanishes completely.

Infinite looks to the spot in surprise at the familiar words. He shakes it off, and lets go of the Ruby dust he still holds in his hand. "Only one remains."

"Infinite!" Infinite turns his head to looks at Knuckles, who is still clearly tired out from the fight. "You said…you'd complete the Ruby's task…you're still trying to destroy the world, aren't you!? You traitor!"

Infinite can't help but let out a laugh. "Traitor? I never said a false word to you. I told you over and over again that all I wanted was the Ruby, and I meant every word of it. Now, if you'll excuse me…"

"You aren't going anywhere!" Knuckles leaps in to attack. But Infinite easily zips up into the air.

"You think that you can stop me? I am Infinite. I can't be stopped. Not by Sonic, not by Shadow, and certainly not by _you_." With that, he releases a wave of negative energy around himself, which collapses in on him, warping him away.

Vector and Charmy run in just in time to see. "Was that…?"

Knuckles nods slowly.

"Look, no time to dwell on it now! This battle is over, we need to get to Eggman's fortress!"

"I couldn't agree more." Knuckles reaches for his communicator. "This is Field Commander Knuckles to all forces. It's time we bring this war to its end. We're heading for Eggman's fortress!" There are cheers from troops spread throughout the city.

—–—

Super Shadow dashes towards the Titanic Monarch's Ruby. The machine lifts a charging cannon, and fires its massive energy beam, forcing Shadow to dive down out of the way. Black Night tries to come in from the side, but the machine turns its massive body to the side, arcing the intense beam across towards the second attacker. He tries to dodge out of the way as well, but isn't quite fast enough, and gets grazed in the shoulder. He lets out a cry of pain, and starts to spiral down towards the ground, out of control.

"Blacklight!" Shadow breaks off from his next attack, diving down to catch Blacklight out of the air.

Before Blacklight can be caught, he moves away and gives Shadow a wink. "Gotcha." He chuckles a bit as he flies back up into the battle.

Shadow growls a bit as he shakes it off and flies back off himself. He says through his communicator, "You have to be more careful. That beam is pure Ruby energy, one hit could take either of us out."

"Silly Shadow, you think I don't know that? Hello? You're talking to the wielder of the Ruby, until, like, an hour ago."

Several chest panels on the Titanic Monarch open, revealing rows upon rows of missile launchers, which all fire at once. Shadow weaves and dives through the air to avoid them. "Just focus."

Blacklight faces a similar onslaught of missiles from the other side. "Come on, I can multitask, can't I?" Suddenly he shouts, "Chaos Inferno!" He creates a wall of fire in front of him that eliminates a large swathe of missiles at once. He continues as if it hadn't happened, "So I was thinking, how would you feel about scheduling our next death match?"

"Death match?"

"Yeah, you know. You versus me, battle to the death, I mean we do it all the time anyways. Wouldn't a schedule make it more convenient? I was thinking next Tuesday… No no, Wednesday, Wednesday's better."

"Are you really asking me this right now?"

"Come on Shadow, you know better than to question my logic. It's infallible."

Shadow shakes his head and ignores the question anyways, as he dives down to avoid another beam. "Why hasn't Chaos gotten to that Power Plant yet?"

A fair distance away from the battle, Hero stands on the top of the Imperial Tower, watching the battle from as close as he can get, as Shadow and Blacklight, barely any larger than the specks they appeared as from the ground, circle around the Titanic Monarch in an attempt to get close enough to damage it. Bruno floats beside him, similarly staring out.

"Quite the machine, isn't it? Of course, its power source is the real beauty." Hero looks over with a gasp of shock to see Infinite, floating out in the air beside him. He looks from the Ruby on his chest to the mask on his face, and starts to back off, trembling slightly. "What's the matter, child? Still afraid of me? But I thought that you…saw the _good_ in me."

With quite a bit more confidence than his partner, Bruno floats right up to Infinite's face, squeaking angrily.

Infinite puts a hand over the Wisp's face to silence it, and pushes it off to the side so that he can continue speaking to Hero. "Don't you still see it? I'm the same person that I was." Bruno continues to push against his hand, letting out muffled jabbers.

Hero looks from Bruno up to Infinite.

"I suppose I should…assure you, that my outburst before was only a brief moment of weakness. I intend no harm to you now. In fact, I came here to warn you. To stay out of my way." After a moment, he releases the Wisp, letting it fly back to Hero's side. "It is best for you…to heed my warning." With that, he turns and flies off in a streak towards the head of the Titanic Monarch.

As Infinite flies past the distant figure of Shadow, he can be heard shouting through the radio as he stops, "Was that Infinite!?"

Blacklight responds, "Sure looked like him. But how'd he get the Ruby? I thought you destroyed it!"

"No, it had to be a prototype. But how'd he get it?"

"Oh. Heh heh. I may have left one of those lying around right where we left him. Maybe." Infinite has already long since disappeared into the Titanic Monarch.

While the two argue, Hero and Bruno look to each other, and share a mutual nod. Bruno flies into Hero's Wispon, and it starts to vibrate in his hand to show its readiness. Hero looks one last time out at the Monarch to judge its distance. Then he fires his grappling wire up at a high overhanging part of the tower, launching himself up as hard as he can. As soon as he reaches the apex of his arc, he points his Wispon down and fires, creating an explosion that launches him into a new arc. He continues this way, firing down over and over again to propel himself closer and closer to the massive robot. As he draws closer, he fires down one last time, but a loud squeak instead of an explosion tells him that Bruno can't provide any more energy. Left flailing through the air a short distance away from his target, he has to think fast. The Titanic Monarch swings its massive arm towards Shadow. The edge of its cannon hand draws just close enough for Hero to fire his grappling wire at it, taking hold, and getting him swung around uncontrollably. As the hand reaches the end of its swing, he manages to unlatch the wire, allowing him to fly further up into the air from the force of it. Once up high enough, he fires again, this time at the shoulder joint, which he uses to make a much more effective swing, until he finally lands on the relatively stable ground of the Titanic Monarch's shoulder.

The shoulder shutters as the Monarch continues to fight, but Hero manages to hang on. He looks up to the side of the Monarch's head, where there is a very small hole in what might be described as its ear. Hero immediately heads for it.

—–—

Knuckles, along with the rest of the army, stand on one of the few remaining undamaged cliffsides, overlooking the battle between Shadow, Blacklight, and the Titanic Monarch. "Uhh…"

Amy questions, "What can we even do about that?"

"Infinite came this way, but…I don't see him anywhere." He goes for his communicator. "Hey Shadow, uh, we're here to help out, you know, if you need it?"

After a moment's delay, Shadow responds through slight static, "Is Chaos there with you?"

Knuckles looks around. "No. Come to think of it, neither's Rouge and Omega."

Shadow can be heard sighing. "I sent them back to take out this thing's power source in Metropolis, but there still hasn't been any change!"

Vector shouts, "Of course! A double fake out! Eggman wanted us to think that he was stopping us from getting here, so we would do everything we can to get here, when we really needed to be back at Metropolis the whole time!"

Knuckles continues, "Long-range communications are still down, we're too far to touch in with them now."

Shadow answers, "Some of you should–" He cuts off as the Titanic Monarch suddenly freezes in place, becoming covered in glitching particles and sparking Ruby aura.

—–—

Eggman's Egg Mobile has been hooked into a sort of cradle, tethered by four chains of spherical devices to various parts of the wide mechanical room, filled with screens and massive wires. Clearly, Eggman controls the entire Titanic Monarch from here, and he seems quite occupied by the task. He doesn't notice when Infinite floats up to him.

"Hello, Doctor."

Eggman looks up with a start. "Blacklight!" He realizes his mistake in a quick moment. "Infinite?"

"I'm disappointed, Doctor. You really have forgotten me, haven't you?"

"Heavy King reported that he faced you in battle, but somehow I didn't believe him. You've been gone a long time. Finally come back to join forces with me again? Impressed by my new machine, are you?"

"Well…" Infinite crosses his arms and looks down to the transparent floor, underneath which the massive Phantom Ruby prototype is suspended, pulsating slowly, and casting the room in a fluctuating violet light. "…I am impressed by something. But don't think that I've forgotten, Doctor. About how you took my prototype from me when I still needed it to fight, just to power your machine that failed in the end. You betrayed me, Doctor."

"So what, then? You've come to exact your revenge?"

"Really, Doctor, you place too much importance on yourself. I'm only here for your Ruby. Besides, I'm in a forgiving mood today. So I'll make this simple. Leave now. _I'll_ take over from here."

"You really expect me to hand it all over? You think that I don't have defense mechanisms installed here?"

"Doctor, I would expect you of all people to understand that my power is not to be taken lightly. Don't disappoint me again."

Ignoring him, Eggman presses down on an activation key, and instantaneously, two massive violet hands, appearing to be made of crystalline Ruby material, appear floating in the air, and immediately reach out for Infinite.

Infinite runs Ruby energy through his blade, and starts slashing through the air, generating two slash-waves that cut through the air and shatter each of the hands.

Eggman continues the attack, firing a cluster of missiles from his mechanism that all lock on to Infinite.

Infinite continues to slash, taking out another missile with each of his slash-waves. But even when there are no more missiles left, he continues to slash, severing each of the four tethers to Eggman's mechanism and leaving it completely separated. He finishes with his blade pointed straight at Eggman. "Last chance. Leave."

Eggman lets out a growl as he assesses the situation. He looks down to one of the screens on his mechanism, showing Shadow and Blacklight still circling outside. He opens his arms wide in a welcoming gesture. "Very well. You win. It's all yours." With that, he detaches the Egg Mobile from what remains of the mechanism, and flies off.

Infinite lets out a brief chuckle. "That's what I thought." He crouches down, and places his hand on the barrier between himself and the massive Ruby prototype below. "Perhaps…this one is too useful to destroy. As long as I control both of them." He instead drifts over to the spot in the center of the floor where Eggman's control mechanism had been attached. He directs out both of his hands, and the four severed tethers are drawn up into the air around him. As his Ruby starts to glow, he channels four continuous bolts of Ruby energy into each of the cables, granting him complete control.

Around the corner, Hero stands with back pressed against the wall, apparently having been listening for quite some time.

—–—

Infinite's voice booms out of the Titanic Monarch, "Attention Shadow, Resistance, and the fool who tried to take my Ruby. You all stand in the way of my perfect world. So you will all be destroyed." To the overwhelming sound of an activating Ruby, a wave of negative energy disperses out from the Monarch. As the wave passes along the ground, Replica after Replica rises up from the ground, all appearing to be of Infinite himself. However, their whole, undamaged masks have both eyes covered, showing nothing underneath. In a glitchy haze, the Monarch's head begins to transform, until it resembles a mechanical recreation of the same mask. The Eggman emblem on its chest plate just below the Ruby similarly distorts into a stylized infinity. The Infinite Monarch continues, "Those who flee will be spared…for now."

As if to prove a point, the Monarch swings one arm to the side, crashing through the Imperial Tower as it crumbles into rubble.

On the ground, the Replicas attack. Knuckles commands, "Don't back down! This guy is old news, we'll show him that he doesn't scare us!" The army moves back into battle once more.

In the air, Shadow and Blacklight have resumed their attempts to attack the Monarch. But its movements now seem to be faster, it can fire from both cannons at once with less charge time, effectively keeping them away. Shadow growls, "It's even harder to get at than before!" He dives around another cannon blast. "It must still have the same power source. What's taking Chaos so long!?"

—–—

In Metropolis, Chaos, Rouge, and Omega appear to be deep inside a building, with tall walls lined with flat lights bearing the insignia of HEXAeco. In front of them is a practically solid mass of robots, the most armored in front, the most heavily armed firing from the back, and all kinds of varieties in between. Omega unleashes his entire arsenal at once, taking them out in huge numbers, while Chaos and Rouge are a bit less efficient.

Chaos throws a Chaos Spear as close to the center of the cluster as he can get it, and it explodes on impact, taking out a sizable few, but making a relatively small dent in the small army. "Just how many robots can one doctor make?"

Rouge kicks through one robot after another, taking out an entire line of them. "I guess we're in the right place. He _really_ doesn't want us here."

Omega swirls his machine-gunning arms around in a manner that almost seems to be more for showing off than for combat efficiency. "I hope this day never reaches an end."

Chaos glances over at Omega with surprise, but only has a moment before dodging out of the way of another laser blast. As his fur starts to turn red with rage, he shouts, "Everyone stand back! I'm going to put an end to this!" He starts to take on a sparking red aura as he leaps for the clearing he made in the center of all of the robots. "Chaos Blast!" With his shout he unleashes a fiery explosion of energy which shreds through the remaining robots swiftly. He is left panting on the ground, returned to his neutral white color, surrounded by singed robot parts.

Rouge moves in to help him up. "Chaos Spear _and_ Chaos Blast? Just who are you?"

Chaos wobbles a bit on his unsteady feet. "I assure you…it is much too complicated to go into right now. But that was the last…of my energy. I won't…be doing much of anything for the time being."

"Luckily, there's no need. The core of the Power Plant is right up here, there should be a control panel around here somewhere."

Omega shouts, "Control panel located! Shall I destroy it?"

Rouge immediately objects, "No!" She runs past him to the panel he has indicated. "Last time we were almost burnt to a crisp when we accidentally triggered the plasma levels to rise in the core. If we drain the plasma instead, that should cut all power coming out from this facility." She has already gotten to work on the controls. "And…that should do it!" She presses one last key, and all the lights on the walls go dim. Through a see-through door into the next chamber, the glowing orange plasma that powers the plant can be seen draining.

—–—

On the battlefield, the Infinite Monarch once again shutters to a halt, as the hundreds of replicas on the battlefield similarly freeze, many in mid-movement, glitching and spazzing, and some even disappearing entirely.

Not hesitating this time, Shadow shouts, "Now's our chance!" He flies straight towards the center of the Monarch, this time without any resistance.

—–—

"No! I will not be defeated so easily!" With Infinite's shout, he releases his own negative energy wave that expands far beyond the confines of the control room. Around the corner, Hero tenses up in fear as it washes over him painlessly. As it passes over the larger Ruby beneath them, the Ruby flares back to life, pulsating so rapidly that it almost hurts the eyes. With the Ruby active again, all the interior lights and mechanisms come back on as well, just in time to activate a screen in front of Infinite that shows Shadow being blasted back by the wave, just inches from his target. Infinite declares for all to hear, "I don't _need_ a power source! I will control this machine with the strength of my will alone!"

Hero takes deep breaths, trying to steady himself, seeming unsure of what to do. Bruno comes out of the Wisp, appearing quite tired, but still looking Hero in the eye for several long moments.

In his ear, Tails' voice comes in through the radio. "He's overclocking the Phantom Ruby, just like Eggman did!"

Bruno flies around and starts to push Hero by the shoulder, urging him onward.

Shadow questions, "What does that even mean?"

Infinite suddenly states calmly, "How long do you intend to keep hiding there, child? I can sense your fear, remember?" Hero gasps. But then he closes his eyes, and steps slowly into sight.

As he walks step by step towards Infinite, Tails explains, "The energy he's pumping through it is exceeding its natural capacity. Keeping it up like that will destroy the Ruby, and, worst case scenario, the rest of our universe along with it."

Infinite cocks his head to the side as Hero comes to a stop in front of him. "You ignored my warning. I would say that I'm disappointed…but from you, I expected no less."

Hero looks him in the eye, and doesn't say a word. Bruno still floats right there beside him.

"I told you once…that your fear…somehow wasn't the same as it was the day we met. I think I understand it, now. You are no longer afraid of what I might do to you. You are afraid of what I might do…to myself. How foolish of you."

Hero nods in agreement at every word.

"I made you an offer on that day. An offer I told you not to forget. That you don't have to be my enemy. This world is imperfect, and I know that you see that just as I do. It will _burn_ someday, with or without my help. But you…you aren't like the others." Though he is too occupied controlling the machine to offer a hand, he bends down his head in a welcoming gesture. "I don't want…to see you burn."

Hero raises his eyebrows in surprise.

"Those people you call friends, they don't understand you the way that I do. You mean nothing to them, don't you see it? They sought you out for their own convenience, and when this is all over they will abandon you once again. Don't try to deny it. I've seen, felt your anxiety at every moment. How you worry that when this war is over, you will have nothing left. You will be useless to them once more."

Hero looks down to the ground and shakes his head fervently.

"Aren't you sickened by their arrogance!? Their condescending attitudes!? Their jokes at your expense!? I have seen how they treat you firsthand, I know that it's true!"

Hero tightens his grip on his Wispon as he stares silently at the ground. Beside him, Bruno starts to jabber angrily in objection.

"You won't accept my offer!? You'd prefer to spend what remains of your life in misery, knowing that you are nothing more than a plaything to those _heroes_!? Then say it! Tell me!"

In a quick movement, Hero points his Wispon up into the air. He lets a sound escape from his lips in a shout. "Nuh-uh!" He pulls down on the trigger, releasing a stream of flames into the wires and machinery above.

"No!" In his rage, Infinite releases a negative energy wave that knocks hero off his feet, pinning him back to the wall. An alarm has started wailing, as warning signs flash on the screens all around. "You want to burn with the rest of the world!? Fine! Then watch as your _friends_ burn first!"

—–—

The Replicas on the ground have resumed their attack, seeming even more violent than before. A large cluster of them appear to be preparing to gang up on Amy. Until a stream of plasma fire cuts into them, fired by the Commander on a ledge above.

Cream flies down to help Amy up. "I hope we're not too late, Miss Amy."

Amy looks up to the Commander with a smile. "No, I think you're right on time." Espio has already moved into the heat of battle.

The Commander reaches for his radio. "How're things going up there, Shadow?"

"Commander?" After a moment he answers, "He's making desperate moves, but if we can't get in close, that won't matter. Commander…I'm surprised that you're here."

"Simple tactical decision, Shadow. Nothing to be surprised over. Just keep your head in the fight."

High up in the air, Shadow nods. "The Ruby is fragile. If we could only get in closer…"

Blacklight floats up beside him. "I think the answer is simple. We're playing it too safe."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Don't be so concerned. _I'll_ make the heroic sacrifice. I'll go in and stop trying so hard not to get hit. I'll risk life and limb to destroy that Ruby. You can sit back and watch your mortal enemy get himself vaporized, like the good little hero you are."

"I can't let you do that."

"And let him blow up the universe? That won't do either of us much good, now will it? Life is but a mortal coil, _mon ami_ , and I have already tasted of death once before. Mayhap my time has come again."

A surprising voice calls into the radio, "Oh, don't be so dramatic."

"Doctor?"

Eggman answers, "Believe it or not, I don't want the universe destroyed either. And there's a much simpler way for you to destroy the Ruby. Your Chaos energy should be more than enough."

"The Ruby _disrupts_ Chaos energy, that's why we're having such a hard time in the first place."

"That disruption works both ways."

Blacklight raises a hand. "I can vouch for that."

Eggman continues, "If you can create a temporary state of perfect Balance, the Ruby will have no effect on you at all."

Another voice, that of Chaos, still sounding weak, adds, "He speaks…the truth. A perfect Balance…will protect you."

"Perfect Balance? How are we supposed to do that?"

Blacklight offers out his hand to Shadow. "I think you already know, brother. Together."

In the radio, Rouge cheers, "It's up to you, Shadow. We're all rooting for you down here."

Shadow takes Blacklight's hand. With linked hands, one flies over the other in a circular motion. After a brief pause, they repeat the motion, faster this time. They begin to swirl around each other, faster and faster, until they become an indistinguishable swirl of black and white.

The Infinite Monarch fires its beam cannon. The orb of black and white launches at the Monarch. When the beam impacts the the orb, its energy is scattered off, completely deflected by Shadow and Blacklight. They continue towards the Ruby, unhindered. The Monarch starts to unleash wave after wave of negative pulses, but each one fails to distort the perfect balance of black and white. Together, they crash straight through the massive Ruby, shattering it into ten thousand pieces. Several moments later, they break out the other side of the huge robot. As the towering machine slowly starts to tip backwards, Hero swings out of the hole to safety.

The Replicas on the battlefield all disappear in a wave as the altered features on the Monarch fade away. The earth shakes violently as it finally crashes to the ground. Still, a cheer rapidly spreads through the crowd.

Super Shadow and Black Night drift slowly down to the center of the wide hole in the broken remains of the Monarch. Infinite is on his hands and knees on the floor, surrounded by shards and dust of the shattered gem. "How could I lose again…?" He claws through the sparkling dust, lifting handfuls of it into the air, and lets it slip through his fingers back to the ground. "This isn't what I saw…"

Blacklight goads, "Aww, did you wose your pwecious Wuby again? Why don't you try not being a baby about it for once?"

Infinite balls a hand into a fist. "If I'm going down…I'm taking you with me!" Drawing on the power of his personal Ruby that still works just fine, he turns up sharply and fires a thin crimson laser beam directly at Blacklight. It strikes him in the center of the chest, sending sparking jolts of Ruby energy coursing through his body as he lets out a loud cry and starts to writhe with pain. His black aura quickly fades.

Shadow shouts, "Blacklight!" He dashes at Infinite, but Infinite uses his free hand to throw out a directed energy wave that effectively knocks Shadow back. Done talking, he puts all his concentration into his continuous attack. Blacklight continuous to writhe and scream in agony. Until a green boot connects with the back of Infinite's head, knocking him to the ground. Blacklight collapses to the ground as well. Hero, the attacker, looks to Shadow as he moves over to pick Blacklight up in his arms.

Blacklight looks up to Shadow meekly. "Shadow…I'm going to kill you for putting me through this." His eyes close as his head relaxes back.

Wordlessly, Shadow turns his head upwards as he Chaos Controls away.

Hero looks down to the spot where Infinite was lying just a moment before. But he is nowhere to be seen.

—–—

 **Eggmanland**

Shadow appears deep inside the mechanical base, still holding Blacklight. Without opening his eyes, Blacklight whispers out quietly, "Where…are we?"

"Eggmanland."

"Mmm." A smile appears on his face. "I like this place."

"Where is your pod? I can put you back in there to recover."

Blacklight immediately objects, "No." He reaches up to place a hand on Shadow. "No more pods. No more stasis. Just leave me here. All I need is rest." Shadow hesitates for a moment. "Besides…it isn't even here."

Gently, Shadow lets Blacklight onto the ground. Then he turns around, preparing to leave. But he stops, and takes a breath in, as if to speak.

Blacklight beats him to it. "Shadow…you know there can only be one, right?"

"One Ultimate Life Form?"

"No. One side. Yours…or mine."

"That isn't true. We can both–"

"You're too smart to fool yourself like that, Shadow. I'll do…whatever it takes…to make you see. Maybe I'll…destroy your friends first. Maybe that will make you see. You know…I never took you for the type to have so many friends. I can fix that for you."

Shadow clenches a fist, further enraged by each word. But he doesn't answer.

"Next time we meet, Shadow…we'll be enemies. The way things ought to be."

Shadow never turns back to him as he warps away again.

—–—

Shadow, reverted to his normal form, appears once again in the center of the moonlit battlefield. After a brief moment, a faint chant can be heard. "Shadow! Shadow! Shadow!" In a matter of seconds, the entire crowd joins in all around, filling the space with cheers of, "Shadow! Shadow! Shadow!" The organized chant starts to break down into less comprehensible cheering and whistling, as Rouge starts to approach Shadow from the crowd.

Shadow turns back to face her. "You put them up to this, didn't you?"

"Nope. This was all you. You're a hero, and it's going to be hard to keep denying it."

The Commander steps up behind her. "The President wants to give you another medal. I told him you'd probably refuse." After a moment, he continues, "You probably know what I'm going to ask next."

Shadow seems prepared to answer immediately, but he hesitates.

"War or no war, we still want you on our side. I can't expect you to forgive me…for how I tried to manipulate you. For the things I hid from you. But I hope you don't hold that against the rest of GUN."

Shadow closes his eyes. "I…I do forgive you. I've already forgiven worse today. But…" He looks up to Rouge questioningly.

Rouge shrugs. "You already know how I feel about all this. If there's one place you can do the most good, it's here, with us."

Shadow looks down to the ground, and lets out a sigh as he contemplates.

"Wait!" Chaos makes his way through the crowd that has long since died down to a pleasant chatter, and comes out to stand on the opposite side of Shadow. "Outlier…Shadow." Tails approaches behind him as he continues, "I saw something incredible today. A perfect Balance…is an occurrence near-impossible in and of itself. But you…you were the Light half of the Balance, you who I saw only as a heart of Darkness just a few short days ago. What I'm trying to say is…it would be my honor…to train you, Shadow the Hedgehog."

"Train me?"

"I am already teaching the Controller everything I know about the ways of Chaos, and I could teach you as well! Your powers are already great, but with my help, you could become a true protector of this world. And perhaps…you could learn something about yourself, as well."

Tails comments, "Remember what I told you? Sonic is so much happier now. I think you could be happier, too."

Chaos adds, "Of course, I would never assume your decision for you. Your choice is always your own."

Shadow looks back to Rouge.

"Whatever you decide, Shadow…it will be your choice. Your life. I know you can do good wherever you go."

Shadow looks down to the ground again as he continues to think. But slowly, he chooses a direction, and starts to take a few steps forward. He stops to raise a salute to the Commander. "Commander…it _would_ be an honor to continue serving with GUN." The Commander moves as if to respond, but Shadow cuts him off. " _But_ …GUN isn't the place for me. Not anymore. So I would like to formally request an indefinite leave of absence."

The Commander returns the salute, and gives a nod in understanding. "Granted. The honor's been entirely mine, Shadow."

Rouge adds, "I guess we'll just have to make do without you."

Shadow gives her a nod and turns the other way, walking the rest of the way to Chaos and Tails.

Chaos looks to Shadow with uncertainty. "Does this mean…?"

Shadow gives a nod. "I made a promise to protect this world. I think you can help me do that. I will be your student."

"I'm very pleased to hear it."

Through the crowd, another figure approaches the Commander. Hero steps up to him confidently, and holds up a strict and formal salute. Beside him, Bruno replicates the motion with a squeak.

"You…wish to remain with GUN, Hero?"

Hero nods with absolute certainty.

The Commander gives him a smile and returns the salute. "Excellent. We can start your formal training tomorrow." Rouge gives him a pleased nod as well.

Chaos looks out to the wreck of the Titanic Monarch, where Blacklight was taken away from. "You didn't have to save him. You know full well what he may be responsible for in the future."

Shadow and Tails look to each other for a moment. "I think we all know…that wouldn't have been the right thing to do."

Chaos nods. "Still…he makes me uneasy." Suddenly, his communicator buzzes in his ear. He reaches up to tap it. "This is Chaos."

The voice of Big the Cat answers, "Mr. Chaos, there's a funny man here to see Mr. Sonic."

Chaos gasps. He looks to Shadow and Tails, who apparently heard as well. "We need to go."

Shadow nods. He and Chaos at once shout, "Chaos Control!" All three are warped away from the battlefield

—–—

 **Mystic Ruins - Tails' Laboratory**

Infinite looks down on the unconscious form of Sonic the Hedgehog silently. A few moments later, Shadow, Chaos, and Tails appear behind him. Shadow and Chaos are already each charging a Chaos Spear in one hand. Infinite never has to look back at them, as he moves a hand closer to Sonic's head. "I wouldn't, if I were you." The Hedgehogs hesitate as he starts to run a clawed finger gently down the side of Sonic's face. "So fragile… At the mercy of anyone who would try."

Shadow growls, "So that's it? After all that, you're just going to take him out while he can't do anything to stop you? Sounds pretty _cowardly_."

Infinite takes a deep breath out. "You may not care about keeping your word, Shadow the Hedgehog, but I am not like you." He waves a hand over Sonic's face, casting out a red haze. "He will wake in a matter of minutes."

"You're…waking him up? Why would you do that?"

"Well, I did ask for something in return, didn't I? But a promise is a promise. I suppose you'll just have to owe me." Sonic is already beginning to stir. "I must be on my way now." He finally turns to glare through his cracked mask at Shadow. "I kept my word. You didn't. Don't forget that, Shadow." He opens his arms wide to activate the Ruby, encompassing him in its negative energy before warping him away.

Chaos, Shadow, and Tails all look back and forth to each other in surprise.

Behind them, Big the Cat announces, "He's so funny."

Everyone jumps, though Tails seems particularly startled by his sudden appearance. Chaos turns to him and lets out awkwardly, "Umm…thank you for your assistance, honorable Big. You are free to leave."

"Okay." Big turns to the frog perched on his shoulder. "Come on Froggy, let's go fishing."

"Ribbit!" The two exit together.

Tails immediately looks to Chaos. "You had _Big_ watching Sonic this whole time?"

"Oh, you two have met?"

"You could say that…"

A grunt escapes from Sonic's lips as he starts to move, casting all eyes on him. Shadow even takes on the slightest smirk. Slowly, Sonic gets a hand down to lift himself into a sitting position. He opens his eyes on three smiling faces, particularly drawn to Shadow. For a moment, he lifts his eyebrows in surprise. Then he closes his eyes again, and lets his body fall back until he is laying down again. "I'm still dreaming, aren't I?"

Chaos answers, "I'm afraid not. Welcome back to the waking world, Controller. This is your new training partner, I believe you've already met."

Sonic sighs. Then he lifts himself back up, this time properly turning to face them. "Alright, I'll bite. What'd I miss?"

Chaos looks over to Shadow. "I believe you are best suited to catch him up."

Shadow nods slowly. "I guess I should start from the beginning. The man you fought…the one who defeated you…was not Infinite. His name is Blacklight…"

—–—

 **Location Unknown - Hidden Base**

Heavy Magician, bald without her hat, uses a wand that appears to be held together by duct tape, attempting to put together the broken pieces of Heavy Shinobi, with only moderate success. Heavy Rider kneels over the crumpled wreck of Jimmy the Motobug. Heavy Gunner, covered in burns, stands in a slouch, holding a cleanly severed piece of his missile launcher in each hand. Heavy King, despite his immense damages, is the only one that stands tall before Eggman.

"Well, Heavies, I'm pleased to inform you all that this campaign has been a great success."

Heavy King is baffled. "Success? You're joking, right? A week ago, you controlled two-thirds of this planet. Now you have nothing, not even the dingy island you began with. I fail to understand how that can be called a success by any measure."

" _That_ , my dear Heavy, would be because you are failing to measure the long game."

"You're saying that you lost _on purpose_?"

"Not at all. But you can think of this war as more of a…test run, if you will. The world is now in disarray. I now know all of the best- and worst-defended locations all over the planet, where best to wage war. And don't think for one moment that I was foolish enough to sit and do nothing while I controlled so much of the world. All over the planet, I have planted underground robot-production facilities, which will be running non-stop for the next…two months, or so. When I say the word, an entire army can rise up from the ground and invade the entire world, simultaneously."

"You can build an army of ten thousand soldiers, you can build an army of ten million. It makes no difference. Numbers were never your problem."

"Ah, now you're starting to think like a true conqueror. That problem is exactly why I've already begun construction on _these_." Eggman enters a few commands into a long console behind him, pulling up a massive display screen that encompasses the entire wall. On the screen, three different technical readouts appear, each describing a different machine, though far too technical to be comprehended. The titles above each read 'E-1X', 'E-4X', and 'E-25X'.

King spends a few moments studying the readouts. "And how, exactly, do you intend to power machines of this magnitude without a Ruby?"

Eggman gives a big grin. "I'm glad you asked." He steps around the line of Heavies to the back of the room, where a device is positioned that might at first be mistaken for a simple metal podium. Attached rows of red and white wires trail out of the device's sides, and drape over it like ribbons. On its top are seven clean-cut gem-shaped slots, arrayed evenly across its surface. " _This…_ is the Chaos Project."

—–—

 **Some time later**

 **Eggmanland - Blacklight's Base**

Blacklight carefully adjusts the screen on the wall, making sure that it is absolutely level. He steps back and puts a hand to his chin as he examines his work. He leans back in to tilt it just a bit more. "There. _Now_ it's perfect." He presses a button on the side of the screen, activating it. It appears to show a looping animation of Shadow, grabbing the Phantom Ruby from Blacklight's chest. The real Blacklight takes a few more steps backwards, all the way to the spot where his Virtual throne used to sit, getting a better view of the entire wall, covered in dozens of similar screens, each showing similar images, clips, or continuous videos of Shadow. "Come here to finish me off while I'm still recovering?"

Infinite, his presence discovered, steps all the way into the light. "Don't sound so certain that you'll lose. It ruins the fun that way."

"Well…I do hate it when fun gets ruined."

Infinite looks up to the collage of Shadow. "What's all this supposed to be?"

Blacklight looks up as well. "I have to know…everything. He and I are practically identical, yet he bests me every time. I need to know how he thinks. Why he lives. What makes him tick."

"Shadow is…certainly a curiosity."

"So why don't you tell me why you're _really_ here?"

Infinite pauses for a moment. "Your first guess wasn't wrong. I came here to fight."

"And yet here we are, chatting about life and hedgehogs instead. I don't mind chatting, though. We can keep talking, if you'd like."

"This all began…the moment I saw your face. From there…things spiraled out of control rather quickly."

Blacklight adds, "As you literally spiraled away from me."

Infinite continues, "Don't think that I've forgotten. You managed a single blow that defeated me. And I managed a single blow that defeated you. I think we owe each other a fair fight."

"A fair fight? Your 'single blow' nearly ended me. I'm not exactly in fighting form."

"My Ruby no longer has any charge left. It does little more now than enhance my abilities. If you really are the 'Ultimate Life Form,' that should put us on quite even ground."

"Aww, you know I won't object to that."

"Then you accept?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

"Well…I suppose not."

Blacklight looks Infinite up and down. "…I think I like you. We should hang out sometime."

Infinite becomes coated in a crimson aura. "We're here now, aren't we?"

Blacklight gives a smirk as he puts up his fists. "That we are, my friend. That we are."

The two figures, white and black, leap at each other, and collide in the air.

 **The adventure ends…**

 **And the rebellion begins.**

 **Coming soon: The Chaos Project – Season 1**

* * *

 **And so, the past has been reviewed. We're all caught up! Approximately two months after these events, Eggman uses his Chaos Project to invade the world in the events of Crisis of Chaos, the four premiere episodes of this story. So where do we go from here? Well, after the premiere, of course! Everything changes now. Events will be more episodic and less serialized, more like a TV show and less like a series of games. And I'm very excited to share this new undertaking with all of you.**

 **If it's been a very long time since you read Crisis of Chaos, or you skipped over it entirely, now wouldn't be a bad time to go back and look it over. It's been a long time since I wrote that, and looking back, I'm not totally proud of everything in it; I've gotten a lot better since then, and it just feels amateurish by comparison. Maybe I'll rewrite it at some point. But for now, everything I've been writing for the past two years has all been for the purpose of leading up to those four original episodes, so they're still very important.**

 **And of course, as always, thanks for reading! Quick reminder, I love hearing your feedback, so even though I feel weird about it, I'm going to keep asking for reviews! It's the only way I can know what you like and what you want more of!**


	38. S1 E1: Alpha and Omega

**GUN Base**

Garbed from head to toe in a suit of black, an animoid figure presses his back against the trunk of a tree, hiding in the shadows of the moonlight. A thin layer of snow coats the exposed patches of ground. Behind the black figure, a yellow-painted Egg Flapper hovers slowly through the air, scanning back and forth with its searchlight. The light passes over the tree, but the figure remains unseen on the other side. When the robot passes, the figure takes his chance, making a run past it, and diving into a large hole that appears to have been blasted into a tall metal wall.

Once inside, the figure glances around, taking in his surroundings. He presses back against the wall the moment he sees another searching Flapper, crossing through an intersecting hallway ahead. Once it's passed, he resumes his straight run into the base. He continues for quite a while, meeting less and less resistance the farther into the abandoned base he moves.

Suddenly, he once again moves against a wall. He looks back and forth carefully, assuring that there's no one to see. He turns and starts to enter a code into a keypad on the wall beside him. When he presses the last key, a door beside him slides open, and he moves in as quickly as possible, letting it close behind him, leaving no trace of his ever having been there.

Inside the dark room, not much bigger than a closet, the figure looks up and down the impressive red and black stature of E-123 Omega, hunched over and with all lights dim, apparently deactivated. The figure speaks with an unmistakable voice and a sigh of relief, "Finally found you."

The figure reaches up to pull off the tight black coverings on his head, revealing the face of Sonic the Hedgehog underneath. He breathes a little easier without it. "Now, let's get you turned on."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 1**

 **Alpha and Omega**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, January 12th, 0 A.E. This is Tails reporting.**_

 _Okay, so technically my name is Miles Prower, but everyone calls me Tails. This is gonna be the very first one of these, so I guess I should explain what this is._

 _About a month ago, Dr. Eggman used his robot army to take over the world. But I bet you already knew that. We tried our best to fight them off, but when all hope seemed lost, Sonic and I, and a small group of our friends, managed to retreat, and meet up in a secret location. We might be the only ones left who can fight back against Eggman._

 _So now, we're all here together, trying our best to find ways to fight Eggman, without getting caught. And I was thinking…well, after the first Eggman War, we all got a lot of questions about some of the things that happened during those six months, and…we weren't really able to answer most of them in detail. We weren't keeping any kind of records, so now, a lot of that history is lost. So I thought, if we had everyone record one of these logs each day, or at least as often as they can, talking about whatever they've been doing during the day, then we can have a complete record for the future. Who knows? Maybe someone could be listening to this hundreds of years from now!_

 _It took some work to convince everyone else, but I told them it could help us here and now, too. Let's say…someone just…disappears. I mean, freaky stuff like that happens to us all the time. If we listen to their most recent logs, it might give us a clue what happened to them, help us find them._

 _Oh, I guess I should also explain that date I said. The whole thing about this being for the future…well, I want it to be timeless. No matter what year it is whenever someone listens to this, I don't want it to matter what their calendar looks like. 0 years A.E., this year, is just the first year After the Eggman Empire. Anything that happened last year would be B.E., Before the Empire. This is the 12th day of the empire, and that's the only date that matters._

 _So I guess I'd better get on to the daily part, now. Sonic is still out on some secret mission that he left for a few days ago, but Shadow's on his way back, he should be getting here anytime now. The rest of us have been spending time setting up camp, gathering supplies, that sort of thing. We don't have a lot with us here, but…I think we're going to do fine._

 _Hey, I think that's Shadow now! Uh, Tails, out._

—–—

 **Emerald Canyon**

The sloping Emerald Hills of striped green are interrupted by the occasional patch of watery sleet, of the same kind that fell on the New Year. The hills, covered in small bushes, flowers of purple and red, and the occasional palm tree, give way to slightly rockier territory the farther inland it goes from the sparkling ocean coastline. A gentle river that winds its way through the hills drops off suddenly over the lip of a deep canyon, and its water cascades down into the abyss below. A simple wooden bridge connects the two sides of the canyon just beside it. The walls of the canyon are blocky, checkered in some tall pillar-like strips, in a manner that is difficult to identify as either natural or manmade. Spread sporadically throughout the wall are holes, some smaller, others forming wide cave entrances, a few of which have gentle streams leaking out, joining the larger waterfall in a pool at the wall's base, which continues to flow out along the canyon's new path.

A few familiar faces are gathered at the water's edge, apparently collecting water in containers of various sizes. In the opposite direction of the flowing river, a line of simple fabric tents are set up against the wall of the canyon, most of them a dull orange color. Due to the inward-sloping wall of the canyon, and the outward-protruding grass-carpeted lip above, the tents are well-shaded, and couldn't possibly be seen from directly overhead.

"Shadow! Hey, Shadow!" Tails excitedly waves from the end of the line of tents, as Shadow the Hedgehog approaches from that side of the canyon path.

From beside Shadow, Rouge the Bat comments, "Someone looks happy to see us."

Tails runs up the rest of the way to meet them. "So how'd it go? Were you ever seen? What did–?"

Shadow cuts him off. "Everything is fine." He looks over to Rouge. "I found what I was looking for."

Rouge nudges him in the shoulder. "A dangerous solo mission, just to find little old me? Shadow, if I didn't know better, I'd say you had a crush." Shadow ignores her.

Tails continues after a moment of silence, "Well, it's good to have you here with the team, Rouge." He gets out his Handheld tablet device, and starts to enter some data on it. "But there is one.…slight problem."

"And that would be?"

"We're all out of tents. You'll have to bunk up with someone."

"Share a cramped tent with one of you people? No no. A lady needs her personal space." She looks around absently. "I'd rather sleep up in one of those caves."

"Oh…well, that shouldn't be a problem."

Rouge at first looks surprised that her joke was taken seriously, but then shrugs.

"Well, you can go ahead and start checking those out, I guess."

Rouge nods, and flies off to the nearest cave entrance.

Shadow looks down to Tails. "Still no word from Sonic?"

Tails shakes his head. "He's keeping total silence. I hope he's not doing anything too dangerous…"

Shadow pauses for a moment. "Sonic knows what he's doing. I'm sure he's fine."

Tails looks down to the ground. "Yeah…" Shadow turns to leave, but Tails looks back up at him. "Umm…before you go, I was hoping to get your opinion on something." Shadow stops to listen. "I've already gotten everyone else's approval, even Knuckles, but I wanted to make sure you agreed, too. It's about Sonic…"

—–—

Sonic carefully looks at the control panel on Omega's back. "Alright, this should do it." He taps a few keys, and moves around to Omega's front as his mechanical red eyes light up.

Omega straightens up, and swivels his head back and forth a few times. "Systems activating…" After a few moments, his head stops moving as his eyes lock on Sonic. Immediately, his bulky metal arm lifts up to point its sharp claws directly at his throat. "Intruder: you are in a restricted area! Surrender or prepare to be annihilated!"

Sonic waves his hands frantically. "Whoa, whoa! Calm down, Omega, it's me. It's Sonic."

Omega doesn't respond for several moments. Then he retracts the claws into his arm, as Sonic breathes out a sigh of relief. The claws are replaced by a machine gun a moment later. "Sonic: you are in a restricted area! Surender or prepare to be annihilated!"

Sonic goes right back into panic mode. "Hey, hey, just give me a minute, I can explain! The date, tell me the date!"

Omega pauses once again. "The date is 12, January, at nineteen zero eight."

Sonic leads as he motions with a hand, "And this is a problem, because…"

"Scheduled time of activation was 1, January, at zero six hundred hours." Omega pushes his lethal weapon even closer to Sonic. "Explain, or be annihilated."

"Hey, enough with the annihilation already!" When Omega doesn't respond, he continues, "Omega…there was a war. And we lost."

"Statement incorrect! I have no record of any such war."

"Of course you don't! You were deactivated for–…how long, Omega? When were you deactivated?"

"Deactivation occurred on 31, December, at eighteen hundred hours, for: standard twelve-hour recharge cycle."

"That's right when Eggman attacked. It all happened so fast… Of course they didn't send you out into battle, you didn't have enough power to last out on the battlefield, you would've been a liability. By the time you did, it was already all over. There was no one left to reactivate you. GUN doesn't exist anymore, Omega. Not the way it used to…"

"Your assertions are highly improbable."

"We don't need to go far for me to prove it to you. This place is crawling with Eggman robots. We–"

"Eggman robots have penetrated _this_ facility!? I will eradicate them all!" Omega shoves past Sonic and proceeds promptly out the door.

Sonic looks around through the hallways frantically as he catches up with Omega, but for the moment, they are alone. He ends up jogging backwards to keep up with him while facing him. Realizing he almost forgot something, he quickly pulls his mask back over his face before continuing while waving his arms, "No, no, no eradication, eradication bad! You have to get out of these hallways, we're gonna get caught out here!"

Omega continues to march along at a steady pace, machine gun at the ready. "I do not take orders from rankless meatbags. I will destroy all Eggman robots."

"Look, I know destroying robots is your thing, but think about it this way. If we're seen by even one of those drones, we'll have an entire army on us in minutes. There's no getting out of that. Think about all the robots you _won't_ be able to destroy in future after you get torn to pieces here today!" Omega pauses. The sound of another Flapper approaching can be heard, as its searchlight appears at the intersection just in front of them. "Think faster!"

The Flapper rounds the corner, shining its light on the spot where Sonic and Omega had been hiding. But they are nowhere to be seen. The drone continues on its way down the hall, never the wiser.

Sonic pokes his concealed head out from the door, ensuring that the robot is gone. Then he moves back in, ensuring the door closes behind him. This room appears to be a soldier's quarters. In one far corner, there is a cot with messy, unmade sheets, as if someone had to get out of bed quickly. In the other, there is a small table with several personal items on it, including a photograph of a man and a woman together, which has been tipped over and cracked.

Sonic nods to Omega. "Thanks for listening. Now, we need to take this one step at a time. Let's just work on getting out of here without getting caught, and then we can work out the rest later."

"Negative."

After waiting a moment for Omega to explain further, Sonic questions, "Care to share your objection?"

"Eggman's robots must not be allowed to acquire the package."

"Package? Package of what?"

"That information is classified."

Sonic sighs. "Alright, sounds important enough. Look, if I help you get the 'package', will you promise to stay quiet, not cause a ruckus, and hear me out once we get out of here?"

Omega takes a moment to think. "That is acceptable."

Sonic nods. "Good. Then lead the way."

—–—

Sonic and Omega have made their way to a much more open space, with tall walls, and a few flickering spotlights high above. The room is filled with massive storage containers, piled and stacked on top of each other in huge, uneven blocks, leaving little walking space between them. Sonic lets out a low whistle as he steps down the last of the stairs leading down into the storage room. "What is all this stuff?"

Omega answers, "That information is classified. Civilians are not allowed in this area." The large robot continues to march past Sonic.

Sonic sighs, "At least we're past the annihilation part." He starts moving again. "You sure you can find this 'package' in all this junk?"

"Identification code: SH-123003. It is in this direction."

Sonic continues to check behind his shoulder as they move deeper into the storage room. "At least Eggman's robots haven't found this room yet."

"Your continued resistance to destroying Eggman robots is irritating."

Sonic clearly takes offense, but takes a moment to control himself. "Just remember, it's for the long run."

"Your repetition is not required." Omega suddenly comes to a stop. Sonic looks to the tall wooden crate they've stopped beside. A code printed on its side reads 'SH-123003'.

Sonic nods. "Guess this is it. So how're we going to–"

Omega digs his claws into the side edge of the crate, and forcefully tears off the entire front. Inside the crate is a tall cylindrical machine, with opaque glass all the way around the middle, creating a capsule just large enough to fit someone of Sonic's size. Sonic looks at it curiously. "A capsule in a box?" He scratches at his chin. "Now what's in there that's so much more important than everything else in this room?"

Omega turns his entire upper torso 180 degrees, so that he faces Sonic while his back faces the capsule. "That information is–"

"Classified, yeah yeah. 'Your repetition is not required'."

Several panels on Omega's back have opened up, and eight long, insect-like mechanical arms reach out and wrap around the capsule, securing it firmly to his back. He turns his body back the right way, taking the capsule out with him. "The package has been secured."  
"Good. That means we can–" He cuts off as a loud alarm siren starts to blare. A Flapper has caught sight of them from above the stack of crates, shining its spotlight down and sounding the siren. "Shoot!"

Omega points a machine gun at the patrol bot. "Affirmative. Shooting now." He opens fire, shredding through the drone within seconds, temporarily silencing the alarm.

"No, that's not what I–… Nevermind, we have to get out of here, now!" The two run for the flight of stairs they came down on that lead back up to the ground level. Along the way, Sonic feels around his face, and breathes a sigh of relief that it is still concealed by his suit.

Halfway up the steps, the door at the top bursts open, and armed Egg Pawns start streaming out, firing their blasters almost at random. Sonic prepares to dash at them in an attack, but he hesitates. Omega shoves him aside and fires a missile at the top of the stairs. What robots survive the explosion are dropped through the newly-formed chasm between the steps, and fall until they're crushed against the floor far below. Sonic shakes it off and keeps going, jumping over the chasm and continuing through the door back to the main part of the base. Omega jet-jumps out behind him, still carrying the capsule on his back.

—–—

Sonic and Omega have made it far out into the dense forest. Judging by the condensation of Sonic's breath and Omega's exhaust, it appears to be quite cold. Sonic slows to a stop, and indicates for Omega to do the same. "We've been going for hours, I think we lost them."

Omega's head swivels around to check behind them. "Sensors indicate no sign of pursuit." He looks back to Sonic. "The package is no longer at risk. Your assistance is no longer required." He starts to march off.

"Hey! You promised to hear me out, remember!?" Omega stops. "What are you planning on doing? Where do you think you'll go?"

Omega turns his head to face Sonic, but stays facing away. "I must destroy all Eggman robots. Irrelevant of the participation of the Guardian Units of Nations."

"So you're just declaring single war against Eggman? He has an army! He controls the world! What do you think you can do against that?"

"I am not declaring war. War began on the date of my creation."

Sonic pauses for a moment. "You haven't even asked about your friends. Don't you want to know what happened to Shadow?"

Omega pauses as well. "Do you know the location of Shadow?"

"That's right. I bet he could help you in your little crusade. Of course, I'd have to take you to him first."

Omega turns back to Sonic, marches several steps towards him, and points his claws threateningly. "You will tell me the location of Shadow!"

Not so nervous this time, Sonic places his hand on Omega's claws, and lowers them down to a safer level. "Doesn't work that way. It's a secret location. We can't just go there in a straight line, or we'll be traced. I take you there, and you'll have no way of knowing until we get there, or you leave now and go it alone. I doubt your 'package' would be very safe that way."

Omega doesn't respond at all.

"There's something else you should know. Shadow is part of our team there. We're all going to fight Eggman, together."

"I have no use for a team of meatbags."

"Believe that if you want. But I think Shadow can make that decision for himself. And if you want his help, you'll have to come with me and ask him yourself."

Omega makes no motion for several moments. "…That is acceptable. We will proceed to your secret location."

Sonic nods in relief. Then he looks up into the air, where the nearly-full moon shows through a patch in the otherwise cloudy sky. The forest is alive with sound, the chirping of crickets, hooting of owls, and scuttling of other small animals across the ground. "First…" Sonic practically collapses into a lean back on the nearest tree, showing surprising fatigue. "…I need rest."

"Rest is a waste of time. Observation shows that you are within operating capacity. We will proceed."

"Omega, it has been a _long_ few days trying to find you all without getting caught. I came all the way out here just to wake you up. The least you could do is let me sleep a couple hours." He slides down into a sitting position on the ground. "I'm not taking no for an answer." He closes his eyes for a moment. Without opening them, he adds, "You think you could start a fire?" He points to a fallen log in the middle of the clearing. "It's cold here."

Without a verbal response, Omega transforms one arm into a flamethrower, and fires off a short burst at the log. It catches instantly. Sonic relaxes visibly as the flickering orange glow of the fire washes over his black suit. Omega stares at Sonic for a moment. "Inquiry: why do you conceal your identity?"

"Finally noticed, did you?" Sonic opens his eyes to look to the capsule on Omega's back. "I'll tell you my secret if you tell me yours."

"That information is–"

Sonic puts up a hand. "Nevermind, nevermind." He lets out a sigh. "Long story short, Eggman thinks I'm dead. I'd like to keep that advantage as long as possible. It's one of the only things we have on him right now."

"…That is a sound tactical decision."

Sonic has already closed his eyes again. "I'd appreciate it if you'd keep watch."

Omega pauses to process. "I have no established protocol for: 'keep watch'."

"You've never kept watch on a mission before? It's simple. Just look and listen for…anything that might be a threat, and don't get distracted, keep going until morning. If you find anything, wake me up, and we'll decide whether to run or fight." He pauses for a loud yawn. "And please, _don't_ find anything." After a moment, he adds with a yawn, "That was a joke…"

Omega goes completely silent for a considerable length of time. When he finally speaks, he declares simply, "Keep Watch protocol has been established." Sonic has already nodded off.

—–—

ACTIVATING PROTOCOL: "KEEP_WATCH"

PROTOCOL SPECIFICATIONS:

\- 1) ANALYZE DATA FROM ALL VISUAL SENSORS TO DETERMINE SOURCES AND RESPECTIVE THREAT LEVELS

-2) ANALYZE DATA FROM AUDIO SENSORS TO DETERMINE SOURCES AND RESPECTIVE THREAT LEVELS

-3) IF THREAT LEVEL EXCEEDS SPECIFIED VALUE: WAKE SUBJECT: "SONIC_THE_HEDGEHOG"

-4) DO NOT TERMINATE PROTOCOL UNTIL EITHER:

–a) SPECIFIED TIME LIMIT HAS ELAPSED

–b) SUBJECT: "SONIC_THE_HEDGEHOG" HAS BEEN AWOKEN

INPUT THREAT LEVEL: 20%

INPUT TIME LIMIT: TIMEUNTIL(SUNRISE)

NOW RUNNING PROTOCOL…

AUDIO SENSORS STIMULATED: ANALYZING…

-PROBABLE SOURCE: FIELD CRICKET

-ESTIMATED DISTANCE: 3.27 METERS

-THREAT LEVEL: NEGLIGIBLE

ANALYSIS COMPLETED. ITEMS REMAINING IN QUEUE: 12

AUDIO SENSORS STIMULATED: ANALYZING…

-PROBABLE SOURCE: BARRED OWL

-ESTIMATED DISTANCE: 9.85 METERS

-THREAT LEVEL: 0.04%

ANALYSIS COMPLETED. ITEMS REMAINING IN QUEUE: 147

WARNING: PROJECTED DATA INPUT EXCEEDS ANALYSIS CAPACITY

CONTINUED PROCESSING MAY CAUSE SYSTEM SLOWDOWNS

THERMAL IMAGING SENSORS STIMULATED: ANALYZING…

-PROBABLE SOURCE: HUMAN

-ESTIMATED DISTANCE: 296.42 METERS

-THREAT LEVEL: 3.79%

ANALYSIS COMPLETED. ITEMS REMAINING IN QUEUE: 786

WARNING: PROJECTED DATA INPUT EXCEEDS ANALYSIS CAPACITY

TERMINATING PROTOCOL TO RESOLVE ISSUE…

TERMINATION ABORTED BY PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION "4)"

AUDIO SENSORS STIMULATED: ANALYZING…

-PROBABLE SOURCE: FIELD CRICKET

-IDENTIFICATION CONFLICT: SAVED AS FIELD CRICKET(2)

-ESTIMATED DISTANCE: 4.19 METERS

-THREAT LEVEL: NEGLIGIBLE

ANALYSIS COMPLETED. ITEMS REMAINING IN QUEUE: 1682

PROTOCOL: "KEEP_WATCH" HAS STOPPED WORKING

CHECKING FOR SOLUTION…

TERMINATING PROTOCOL TO RESOLVE ISSUE…

TERMINATION ABORTED BY PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION "4)"

…

AUDIO SENSORS STIMULATED: ANALYZING…

-PROBABLE SOURCE: FIELD CRICKET

-IDENTIFICATION CONFLICT: SAVED AS FIELD CRICKET(132)

-ESTIMATED DISTANCE: 4.42 METERS

-THREAT LEVEL: NEGLIGIBLE

ANALYSIS COMPLETED. ITEMS REMAINING IN QUEUE: ERROR: INVALID VALUE

PROTOCOL: "KEEP_WATCH" HAS STOPPED WORKING

CHECKING FOR SOLUTION…

SOLUTION FOUND

ACTIVATING MISSILE LAUNCHERS

—–—

"Resolving issue!" Omega fires off a missile into the forest thicket, which detonates a moment later, with a loud boom joined by the cracking of trees that are blasted over.

Sonic wakes up with a start, jumping to his feet as quickly as he can. "Huh, what, who's there!?" He looks around frantically, until he finds the smoldering crater that Omega still points his smoking weapon at. The forest has gone completely silent. "Omega…what did you just fire at?"

Omega remains stationary, not responding at all.

"Hello?" Sonic waves a hand in front of Omega's face. "Earth to Omega?"

Finally, Omega's head swivels to face Sonic. "There was a fault in the Keep Watch protocol. It did not account for the volume of data to be analyzed. It has been terminated."

Slowly, the sound is beginning to return as activity resumes in the forest. A few small creatures have even moved to investigate the crater. Sonic looks to the smoldering embers that remain of the fire Omega started. At least a few hours have passed. He looks back down to Omega as his missile launcher arm is finally lowered. He very carefully looks over Omega's face, as if to find some expression that would show how he feels. But the robotic face is as still as ever. "Omega…I think…maybe you should shut down for a little while. Reboot, make sure everything's working right. I'll keep watch for the rest of the night."

"You stated that you require sleep. You cannot sleep while you keep watch."

"I said I needed rest. As long as I'm sitting down, I'll be fine. I think you need it more than I do right now."

Omega pauses. "…The package must be protected."

"I won't let anyone near it." Omega glares at him for a moment. "I won't peek, I promise."

"…You are able to process the necessary data to Keep Watch under these circumstances?"

"Our brains are wired…a bit differently. Just relax. Everything will be fine. Unless you have some other objection?"

"…The previous time I was manually shut down…I was left inactive and helpless for a period of twelve days, one hour, eight minutes, and thirty-seven seconds. In that time, my enemy conquered the world."

Sonic nods. "And now you can't trust anyone else not to make the same mistake. I get it. I really do. I'm going to wake you up on time, Omega. You have my word on that."

Omega takes another long pause to process. "That is acceptable."

Even through the covering over his face, Sonic's smile can still be seen. "Alright then. I'll see you at sunrise."

—–—

The red lights of Omega's eyes flicker to life as he is activated once again. As he straightens up, his head immediately swivels around to check on the capsule attached to his back.

Sonic answers for him, "Untouched, just as promised. I'll admit, I was tempted. But I would never break the trust of a friend like that."

Omega's head turns to look at the pinkish dawn sky that can be seen above the treeline. "Your effectiveness is…acceptable."

"Glad you think so. Now let's get moving. We still have a long distance to cover ahead of us."

—–—

Knuckles the Echidna leans with one shoulder against the cave wall, staring down at a pile of glowing green gem shards on a small raised platform.

A voice speaks softly from behind him, "Even in pieces…it sure is beautiful." Rouge steps up beside him.

The glow of the shattered Master Emerald reflecting in his eyes, Knuckles agrees absently, "Yeah…" After a moment, he comes to his senses, and turns to her sharply. "Hey!"

"Whoa, calm down, Knuckies. I didn't mean it like that. You know, I went the entire year without trying to steal it even once."

Knuckles growls as he relaxes a bit, "You say that like _not_ stealing something was a difficult challenge for you."

Rouge only answers with a chuckle. The two stare at the shattered gem for a while longer. "…It looks like it's all here. Why don't you put it back together?"

Knuckles shakes his head slowly. "I can't. I broke it on purpose."

"Why would you go and do a thing like that?"

Knuckles sighs. "It's something Sonic and I talked about. Obviously, I can't just leave it behind. And last time I tried to take the whole thing with me, it was stolen right from my hands. Eggman already has six Chaos Emeralds, and none of us could forget what he did with just that. If he had the Master Emerald too…" He shakes his head. "We can't risk it. So we're going to make sure that it's impossible for Eggman to get his hands on the whole thing. We're splitting it up. Everyone is put in charge of one shard."

"Everyone? Even me? You're giving me a piece of the priceless gem you're supposed to guard with your life? Knuckles, I never thought you were the type to give jewelry."

"Don't take it so lightly. That shard will be more important than your life. You'll need to hide it somewhere on you, have it with you at all times, and I mean always. If you're going to be captured, you need to make sure it gets back here, or at least hide it somewhere they won't find it."

"Well, that's not depressing at all. But if I were you, I'd be less worried about Eggman getting it from me, and more worried about _you_ ever getting it back from me."

"You'd keep it willingly? I thought they stink like Echidna. Isn't that what you said?"

"Oh, they do. But maybe…I don't think of it as a stink anymore."

Knuckles raises his eyebrows in surprise.

"So, when do you start handing them out?"

"As soon as Sonic gets back. He wanted it to be a sort of…initiation."

"Have you heard the word about Sonic? What we're planning on telling him?"

"I started to conversation."

"You? Really? I would've thought you'd be opposed, with the first war and all."

"Sonic is the only one. I'm certain about that."

"…Where do you think he is?"

"I've heard rumors…that he's out looking for someone to bring back to the team. I think…we all have something different in mind for who that someone is. I bet I can guess who _you're_ hoping for."

"You'd guess right. I am worried about Omega. It isn't like him to just disappear, especially where Eggman is involved. I just hope he's alright."

"If Sonic is really going after Omega, it's Sonic that I'd be more worried for."

"Good point."

—–—

The Sun in the sky has moved quite far along, already beginning to approach evening, casting a clear blue light over the Emerald Hills. Omega fires his thrusters to propel himself over the ground, as Sonic jogs alongside him, at a fair pace, but not so fast that it would give his identity away. He looks up to Omega as they run. "You're sure you can't tell me anything at all about that capsule? Not even a hint?"

"…Very well. A hint. There is matter inside of the package."

"Gee, that narrows it down…" He closes his eyes and shakes his head as he continues to run. Then his face contorts as if he were listening for something. "Can you hear that?"

Omega takes a moment to process. "Abnormal audio reading identified. Unidentified aerial vehicle approaching from the seven o'clock direction at 436 meters and closing. Threat level: eighty-seven percent."

"Dang it! They must've found us!" They come to a stop, as Sonic takes just a few moments to form a plan. He points off in one direction with his arm. "Keep going this way, you'll find our base. Get help." He looks off in another direction. "I'll go that way, closer to them. With any luck, they'll follow me."

"Negative. We can–"

Sonic's already started running off. "No time for second-guessing! Just follow my plan!"

Omega watches for a moment as Sonic moves away. Then he moves in his own direction.

As Sonic jogs along at an agonizingly slow pace, his pursuer starts to come into view far off to his side, clearly flying in a straight course towards him. Sonic gives a nod in satisfaction. As the pursuer grows closer, its shape can start to be made out. There appears to be a personal-sized helicopter, flanked on both sides by four smaller figures that appear to be flying with jetpacks. Piloting the chopper is the transformed weapon-toting Egg Robo, Heavy Gunner. Once the Gunner gets close enough to see Sonic, a blaring police siren is activated. Once he hears the siren, Sonic comes to a stop, waiting for the chopper to approach the rest of the way.

Through a loudspeaker, Heavy Gunner shouts, "Halt! You are under arrest by authority of the Eggman Empire! Any resistance will be met with use of force." The chopper sets down on the ground beside Sonic, as do the blue and white painted Egg Pawns that guard it. Two of the Police Pawns march up to Sonic, and cuff him without resistance.

Sonic, in the most disguised voice he can manage, drawls, "I didn't do nothin'!"

Gunner glares at him for a moment. "'Nothin', eh?" He looks down to the readouts on the helicopter's control panel. "'Cause it says here you're guilty of trespassing, destruction of imperial property, and association with a known fugitive of the Empire."

As Sonic is forced to his knees, he questions, "Guilty? Don't I get a trial or somethin'?"

Gunner can't help but let out a laugh. "Since it's clear you don't know much about how we do things 'round these parts, I'll fill you in. The Emperor is your _judge_ and _jury_. And _I_ am the executioner. On occasion. Any plea that you have, you make it to the Emperor, _if_ he grants you the honor of hearing it. And lucky for you, the Emperor's taken a _very_ special interest in you. He asked me to call the moment I found you." He enters a few commands into the panel, and a small screen rises up out of it, and, after a moment of static, cuts to show the face of Doctor Eggman. Gunner bows his head to the image. "Caught your runaway, Chief."

Eggman grins on the screen. "Excellent work, Gunner. Show me."

Gunner rotates the screen around so that it faces Sonic, restrained on the ground. Sonic clenches his eyes shut and faces the ground, praying that he isn't recognized. Eggman lets out in a surprisingly gentle voice, "Now, now, there's no need to be afraid of me, citizen. We're just trying to work out a little problem, is all."

Sonic mutters at the ground, "I didn't do anything, man."

Eggman suddenly shouts, "You will not address your Emperor in such a tone! You will refer to me as _your highness_!"

"Fine…"

"No no. I want to hear you say it. And look me in the eye when you speak to me."

Sonic slowly looks up to the screen. "Fine…your highness."

"There. Now that wasn't so hard, was it?" Sonic doesn't answer. Eggman continues, "As I was saying before, we just have a little problem to work out. As I'm certain my friend Heavy Gunner has already told you, you've been seen associating with a known fugitive, who goes by the name of Omega."

Sonic feigns, "The robot guy?"

"Yes. The robot guy. Would you care to tell us how the two of you met?"

"I'm…a scavenger. I was just looking for parts, when I found this big robot guy. I tried to turn him on, and he started talkin' about destroying stuff, and I thought it was _wicked_ awesome. But I don't think he liked me much. He ran off a while back."

"Ran off _where_ , exactly? If you can tell us, I may just be able to drop those nasty charges against you."

"I dunno." He makes a motion with his head off in a random direction. "That way, I guess."

"I hope you know, it is also a crime to _lie_ to your Emperor."

"Of course…your highness."

Eggman glares through the screen at Sonic for a long time. "Hmmm. Very well. I don't think this… _boy_ can help us, Gunner. Get that mask off him, put him in the system, then let him go and continue your search through this area."

Sonic instinctively shouts, "No!"

Eggman's eyebrows raise in surprise. "Well, it sounds like our friend here has something to hide after all. What's the matter, boy? Have a secret under that mask?"

Gunner barks at his Police Pawns, "You heard your Emperor! Remove his mask!"

While one Pawn holds him down, the other grabs the covering on Sonic's face, and starts to pull it off. Sonic puts up little struggle. Slowly, the fabric is pulled all the way back, revealing Sonic's striking blue fur underneath. This time, he meets Eggman eye to eye as his face is revealed.

"It can't be…"

Sonic gives a smirk, dropping the act completely. "Aww, what's the matter, Eggman? Aren't you happy to see your old pal Sonic?"

Eggman lets out a loud growl. "Gunner! Forget about Omega! Take Sonic directly to me, _immediately_!"

Gunner nods as he finally steps out of his parked craft, pointing his large missile launcher threateningly at Sonic. "You got it, Chief." Gunner steps up to Sonic, and wraps a large hand around his arm. "You're coming with me, rodent." Then the chopper behind him explodes.

Omega stands on the crest of the nearest hill, missile launcher still smoking. Gunner shouts, "You!?"

Even with his hands bound, Sonic springs into action, taking care of the two closest Pawns with just his feet. The other two move in to subdue him.

Gunner fires off a missile, but Omega fires one of his own, and the two collide in a fiery explosion in the middle. Gunner prepares to fire off another, but Sonic appears in front of him, delivering at upwards kick that sends the box-shaped missile launcher flying up into the air. Omega's machine gun shreds it to pieces before it falls back to the ground in a smoking wreck. Unrelenting, Gunner dives for Sonic with his arms. Omega fires a flamethrower in an arc between Sonic and the Gunner, creating a wall of fire between them.

Sonic uses the distraction to run the other way at top speed, passing Omega as he goes. "Come on, let's get out of here!" Omega jets after him.

When the flames die down, Heavy Gunner is left alone, surrounded by the smoldering rubble left from the battle. He reaches a hand up to his head as if speaking into a communicator. "This is Gunner. They got away."

—–—

Sonic and Omega move along the bottom of the canyon at a much more leisurely pace. "I thought I told you to get help."

"That was not a tactically sound decision. Assistance would not have arrived in an adequate amount of time. Analysis indicated that you were attempting to deceive me."

"What!?"

"Your plan was not intended to succeed. Your intention was to sacrifice yourself."

Sonic takes a moment to respond. "…I guess you're right."

"…Inquiry: why?"

Sonic thinks on that for a moment. "We have something in common, Omega. Back during the first war…we were both out of commision, the whole six months. I know what that's like. When I heard that you were out there somewhere, not able to do anything about it, just like last time…I knew I had to find you. So you could be there, to do something. And I wasn't gonna let them take that away from you so soon." Sonic shakes his head. "Besides, what about that package of yours? I don't know what's in there, but I know how important you think it is. I wanted you to get it somewhere safe. I can't believe you risked it just to save me."

Omega takes the usual pause to process. "For a meatbag…you are an effective weapon against the Eggman Empire. Your survival…is more important than the contents of the package."

"That means a lot…I think."

"I advise against such self-destructive behavior in the future."

"You're probably right. But I guess it all worked out in the end. So…I guess you're gonna ask Shadow to leave with you once we get there?"

"…Negative. I will remain with your…team."

Sonic gives a satisfied smile.

An excited voice shouts, "Sonic!" Off in the distance down the canyon, Tails turns back to call to the rest, "Everyone, Sonic's back!" The noise level at the camp quickly rises as everyone starts to join together into a group to greet Sonic.

Sonic greets with a wave, "Hey, everyone. I brought a friend."

Shadow and Rouge greet Omega with a nod.

Knuckles questions, " _This_ is who you were going after?"

Sonic nods, "Yeah. There a problem with that?"

"Well no, but…" Knuckles looks back to the group, noting who isn't there. "…there were rumors, and I thought…"

Vector blurts out for him, "What about the Rookie?"

Amy adds, "What about Big?"

Knuckles finishes for himself a bit more quietly, "What about M–"

Sonic cuts him off. "Look, I know we don't have everyone here. And we _are_ going to do everything we can to find them all. But for now, how about we celebrate our first big victory against Eggman, huh? Omega and I just showed one of those Heavy goons what for!"

Shadow suddenly growls, "You were in battle!? Well did they see you!?"

Sonic looks down to the ground. "Yeah… Eggman himself. But come on, it's not so bad! Think about it, we can show the world that we're alive now. That could make a big difference in this war. I think it's still worth celebrating."

Tails steps up to Sonic. "Before we celebrate anything…there's something we've been talking about while you were gone."

Sonic raises an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well, actually, Knuckles was the one who brought it up, but I asked everyone, and we're all in agreement. If we're all going to fight together like this…we need a leader."

Sonic gives a smile as he walks up to Knuckles. "Well, if everyone agrees…" He pats Knuckles on the back. "Congratulations, buddy."

Knuckles can't help but snicker a bit. "He wasn't talking about me."

"Oh." Sonic looks around in slight confusion. "Well…Shadow, I guess you were in charge last time, right? I'm sure you–"

Shadow shakes his head, unable to contain the slightest smirk.

"Oh. Umm…"

Tails lets out a laugh. "We were talking about _you_ , Sonic."

Sonic is taken aback. "Who…me? N…no, I…." He looks around somewhat frantically, but meets only smiling, nodding faces. "Come on guys, I'm no leader! Quit messing around!"

Knuckles jests, "Is that your first order, sir?"

"Sir!?" Sonic covers his face with his hands and lets out a muffled grunt as he tries to straighten out his thoughts. "Guys…I'm flattered, but…I don't have the experience. I don't have much of anything. I'm just…"

Tails shakes his head. "Sonic, we all see how you've changed. A year ago, you would've been practically begging to be leader."

"Well, yeah, but…"

Knuckles assures, "I saw the potential in you a long time ago, but this last year, I've really seen it come out. You're a natural."

"I don't know how to…"

Vector advises, "Being a leader is about more than just the technical stuff. It's about inspiring confidence in people. And if there's one thing this world needs right now, it's a little confidence."

Cream adds, "You've inspired every one of us, Mr. Sonic. And everyone else, too."

Sonic bites his lip.

Shadow steps up beside him. "I think…Chaos would have agreed. You're the hero this world needs. And the world needs to see it."

Sonic lets out a sigh.

Tails still gives him a big smile. "We all believe in you, Sonic. We know you're the right choice."

Sonic lets out another long sigh. "Alright…I'll do it." The group lets out a collective cheer.

After a moment, Knuckles starts to chant, "Speech! Speech! Speech!" The rest of the group starts to join in the chant. "Speech! Speech! Speech!"

Sonic scratches at the back of his head. "Aw, come on guys. Really?"

"Speech! Speech! Speech!"

"Fine, fine. Give me a second." He closes his eyes and rubs the bridge of his nose as he thinks. He takes a deep breath before beginning. "I…may not know much about being a leader, but…"

Tails is struck by an idea. He pulls out a small recording device, and presses a button to start recording.

—–—

The group appears to have moved deep into a cave, where the pile of glowing green Master Emerald shards lies on the floor. Knuckles stands beside the pile, while Sonic stands in front of it, looking down the line of friends who await him. The recording of his speech continues to narrate.

 _"I know a thing or two about Eggman. I know that he's ruthless, and conniving, and against everything that we stand for. Freedom. Justice. Peace. I know that this war is going to be like nothing we've ever faced before. And I know, for certain, that I can't do this alone."_

Sonic bends down to pick up a shard of the Master Emerald, and stares into it for a few moments.

 _"I need someone, who can always be at my side, who knows about being a leader, to give me advice, to question my every judgement, to make sure that I'm doing things right."_

Slowly, Sonic hands the shard over to Knuckles.

 _"I need someone, who I can trust absolutely, to be able to take my place no matter what the circumstances."_

Sonic picks up another shard, and hands it to Shadow at the front of the line.

 _"I need someone, who I trust more than anyone else in this world, to back us up, to be our support."_

Sonic takes another shard, and hands this one to Tails.

 _"I need every single one of you, to fight for what we stand for, to be the shield that protects the people from Eggman, to take back our world!"_

He hands the next shard to Amy.

 _"I know that we've all fought in war before. I know that this time, things are different."_

He hands another to Rouge.

 _"This time, Eggman isn't just conquering, he is_ ruling _. We have more to face than just an army, we have to face laws, a government."_

To Omega.

 _"This time, we don't have warships, we don't have an army. It's just us against the entire world."_

To Vector.

 _"This time, we aren't a Resistance. We're a Rebellion."_

To Espio.

" _This time, we have to do everything we can to survive. And we_ will _survive."_

To Charmy.

 _"I know it won't be easy. Nothing worth doing ever is."_

Sonic kneels down to present the final shard to Cream.

 _"I know that Eggman's already taken away too much. We have to always remember who we're fighting for."_

Sonic picks up one last shard for himself. Together, everyone holds up their piece of the sacred gem.

 _"And there's one thing that I know, more than anything else. I know that if we stand together, we_ will _beat Eggman. We will take back the world. We, will, win."_

"Now, if you don't mind, I have about twelve hours of sleep to catch up on."

—–—

Omega gently places the capsule down in a cave of his own. He takes a few steps back, and stares at it for a while.

Beside him, Shadow questions, "Does he know?"

"…Negative."

"He's your leader now. He could order you to show him."

"He stated he would not."

"If he knew what was in there…I don't think he'd have the same attitude."

"…Affirmative."

"…I can't believe you kept it all this time."

Omega's eyes remain locked on the capsule. "We are alike."

"He wanted a world without life. You want a world without machines. It doesn't get more different than that."

"We both rejected our programming. Rebelled against our creator. We are alike."

Shadow doesn't answer for a long time.

"The package must be analyzed for damage."

Shadow gives a nod. "Just make it quick."

Omega presses a button on the machinery at the base of the capsule. The opaque glass-like covering slowly begins to slide open from the side. Revealed on the inside first are the long silvery claws attached to a yellow hand, projecting from a reflective blue arm. Then the metallic red shoe-like foot can be seen on the bottom. Finally, the covering passes over the center of the figure, revealing the unmistakable face of Metal Sonic.

 **To be continued…**


	39. S1 E2: The Answers Lie

**Location Unknown – Eggman's Hidden Base**

"So…the hedgehog is alive after all." Emperor Eggman, sitting with crossed legs in a tall metal throne, tugs at his mustache in contemplation. Though his outfit is similar to what he's always worn, it runs a bit longer, and appears to be made of a more delicate fabric. His mustache has a gloss to it, as if it had been styled and groomed. "Could it be that Blacklight lied to me?" He thinks a while longer. "No… He was absolutely certain he had killed all three of them. But if Sonic is alive, the others could be as well. And he was taking Omega with him… We may have a full-scale Rebellion on our hands. I must accelerate my plans considerably." He suddenly barks, "Gunner!"

Before him, Heavy Gunner gives a frightened salute at the sudden shout.

"I want a _thorough_ investigation of the battlefield in Metropolis! I want to know how that hedgehog got away, and where he might have gone! Security footage, personal testimony, any information you get!"

"10-4, Chief. I'll get started right away." Gunner gives another salute before exiting.

Eggman stares out a window, to a gloomy sky beyond. "This world is already belongs to me. Sonic, dead or alive…is mine."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 2**

 **The Answers Lie**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, February 3rd, 0 A.E. Sonic the Hedgehog reporting.**_

 _Today's finally the day. It's been a long time. Too long. It's been a lot of work getting settled out here. But we're finally ready, to do what needs to be done. I wish that all of us could be here, but there are some people we're still looking for. Like Bu–… I mean…Hero. They weren't close or anything, but I heard they got along well. He would've wanted to be here._

 _Morale has been down ever since I brought this whole thing up. A funeral…or a memorial I guess, since we don't have anything to bury…isn't exactly a good way to get spirits up. But it has to be done. To honor him. And to remind us all what we're fighting for. What Eggman's trying to take away from us._

—–—

 **Emerald Canyon**

Sonic stands in front of a tall, thick tree in the very center of the deep canyon, addressing the rest of the Rebellion. Carved into the bark of the tree is the simple shape of an Emerald. Sonic struggles to speak. "Chaos… Chaos was…" He shakes his head as he trails off again. "I know…not all of you got the chance to know him well. But he was…kind, and…caring, and…he loved every minute he was alive. He loved this world. When I was feeling lost, he…showed me the way. He took me in, taught me things I never thought I could learn. To me, he was like… like a… the closest thing I had…" He never quite finishes the thought. "Shadow…would you like to say anything?"

Shadow, staring down at the ground, shakes his head softly.

Sonic turns slowly, and places his hand on the Emerald carving. He closes his eyes. "Chaos…you won't be forgotten. Your sacrifice won't be in vain. We'll make sure that Eggman gets what he deserves."

Behind him, Tails raises his hand. "Sonic…I'd like to say a few words."

Sonic turns to him with surprise. But he smiles, and indicates for him to step up to the spot where he was standing.

Tails clears his throat as he takes the spotlight. "It…it feels kind of silly, standing up here. I didn't know Chaos, not like Sonic did. But…I think…" He shakes his head. "I didn't really like Chaos that much, when we met. First he was this dangerous creature that I thought I created, but then suddenly, it was like he was Sonic's best friend. Sonic and I had been planning to have this day at the beach together, just to hang out and relax, but then Sonic and Chaos started training instead. He and Sonic were spending all this time together, and I was left alone. I was…jealous. But then Sonic got attacked, and I had to take care of him for a while, and I got to know Chaos a little better. And I realized how much he cared about him. I realized that Chaos would've given his life for Sonic without hesitation. And he did. What I'm trying to say is…Sonic wouldn't be here now, if it weren't for him. And we all owe Sonic a lot. Which means we owe Chaos, too. And…I regret all the mean things I ever thought about him."

Sonic steps up beside him, and places a hand on his shoulder. "Tails…I had no idea you felt that way…"

"It's okay…"

Sonic sighs as he looks back up to the group. "Thank you for coming, everyone. We should head back to camp." Somewhat somberly, the group stands, and starts making their way back along the canyon.

Shadow stops Sonic before he can leave. "Sonic…" He looks back to the carving on the tree. "…what do you think happened to Blacklight?"

Sonic clenches a fist, avoiding eye contact. "You shouldn't talk about _him_ here. It's disrespectful."

"It's been over a month. It's like he just disappeared. It isn't like him."

"He killed Chaos, Shadow. He would've killed us, too. He isn't worth worrying about."

"What if… what if Eggman killed him, too?"

"Then maybe he got what he deserved!" Sonic shows regret as soon as he says it. "I'm…sorry. Shadow…I understand that you know things about him I never did. But he made his choice. And we can all see where that got us."

"…I think we're all on edge right now."

Tails has made it a fair distance away in his slow stroll.

"Hey, Tails."

Tails looks up from his thoughts. "Oh, hi Rouge. Do you need something?"

Rouge matches his stride to walk beside him. "That was a real touching speech back there. Sounds like you're taking things pretty well."

"Well, we're all just…doing what we can. I thought this was important. So…?"

"Oh, so you don't believe that I just wanted to talk to my old friend Tails?" Tails gives her a look. "Yikes, I need to work on my reputation. But you're right. I was looking through one of the caves up in the canyon, and I found something odd."

"Odd? Odd how?"

"Well, I was thinking you might tell me." Rouge takes out an object, a small black box that doesn't appear to have anything significant about it.

Tails stares at it with an odd look for a moment. "It can't be…" Suddenly, he snatches it out of her hand and turns it over. On the bottom, the letters 'TAL' are etched, framed by a familiar two-tailed insignia. "It is!" He glances behind him, and starts to wave excitedly at Sonic. "Hey, Sonic! Come over here!" He looks back to Rouge. "I can't believe you found this, I thought that I–… I thought it was–… Thank you so much for finding this."

"Care to explain what it is?"

Sonic finally catches up. "Hey, what's going on?"

Tails excitedly shows him the etching on the box. "Sonic, look!"

Sonic scratches his head. "Uhh… nice…box?"

"It's not just a box! This is TAL! It's…it's…one of the first computers I ever built."

"TAL? What does TAL stand for?"

Tails hesitates for a moment. "Does it have to stand for something? I just liked the name." He turns it around in his hands for a few moments. "I thought I lost it when I was a kid."

Rouge questions, "Then what's it doing here?"

"Well, I–…" Tails pauses for a moment before finishing the answer. "I…used to live…near here."

Sonic looks around, as if realizing something for the first time. "Oh… It wasn't far from here that we first met, was it?"

Tails nods with a smile. "That's right."

Rouge continues to look at TAL with interest. "If it's a computer, how do you use it?"

Tails turns the device around, pointing to a small port on its side. "I used to have an interface that would plug in here…"

Sonic questions, "Does that mean you can't use it?"

Tails holds up a finger. "Hold that thought." He takes out his Handheld tablet device, and tugs on a small plug that draws out a wire along with it. He plugs it in to the port on TAL. Once the wire is secure, he starts to enter rapid commands into the Handheld. "These operating systems weren't meant to work together, but with a few adjustments, I think I can…" Suddenly, a black window with a blinking cursor pops up on the screen. "Got it!"

Without Tails' input, some text starts to spell itself out across the screen. 'Good evening, Tails. Your last sign-on was 4 years, 4 months, 11 days ago, at 1:32 PM. How was your day?'

"That's a pretty polite computer. What does it do?"

"Well, it's sort of a…problem-solving machine. You put in data, ask it a question, and it calculates the best possible answer. It has an AI built to read and understand the questions and everything."

Rouge twists her head to the side to read the screen better. "And you built this thing when you were, what, six years old?"

Tails appears to be entering in some data. "Five, actually. So you see, right now I'm entering in all of our available supplies, nearby known replenishable resources, and the number of mouths we have to feed, and…" He presses a button, and an image appears on the screen, of a plate full of food, including some roots, berries, and what appear to be military rations. "Take a look."

Sonic stares at the image for a few moments. "All this is doing is making me hungry."

" _This_ is the ideal meal. It simultaneously maximizes nutritional intake with resource management. If we eat like this, we can all be healthy and still have food to eat for a long time to come."

Sonic nods. "Not bad. I'll see about making these adjustments."

"Hold on. Give me another minute, and I can adjust for age and body type, it'll be a lot more–"

Sonic places a hand on Tails' shoulder. "Tails." He looks up at him. "It's great that you found your computer. But it's getting late. Let's get some dinner, and you can keep messing around with it later."

"Oh…okay."

—–—

Sonic sits at a desk in a lantern-lit tent, staring at a few papers arrayed out on the surface in front of him. He holds his head up in one hand, appearing to be on the verge of falling asleep.

Suddenly, Tails bursts through the entrance to the tent. "Sonic!"

Sonic sits up with a start. "Tails! What're you–…" He looks around for a moment. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Yeah, I know, but…this couldn't wait." He turns his Handheld to show Sonic the screen. It shows a map with a red blip on it.

Sonic rubs his eyes to get a better look. "What is this?"

"Sonic…I know where Hero is."

"Hero…you mean, the Rookie? How'd you find him?"

"I've been spending the last few hours putting all the data through TAL, and there's an 82% chance that he's right here, waiting for us at our old Resistance base in Sunset Heights."

"Whoa, whoa. I have several questions. First, you said eighty-two percent. That's pretty far off from one hundred. What about that other eighteen percent?"

"Well, there's only a six percent chance that he's at…any other location."

"That still leaves twelve."

"Yeah…since he's been with GUN…and they went to war…he could be…"

"Oh. Alright. Second, how can you be certain this is even right?"

"TAL's never steered me wrong before."

"Okay. One last thing. We've all been guessing he might be there, but it's _way_ too risky to go anywhere near Sunset Heights, it's a heavily-defended area." Sonic puts a hand on one of the papers on the desk, and flips it around to show Tails. "Look for yourself."

Tails seems to notice the papers for the first time. "What is all this?"

"These are the intelligence reports Vector brought back this afternoon." He leans back in his chair. "If I'd known being leader meant staring at papers for hours on end, I might've refused the job. But this is stuff I need to know. And I can't blame Vector for being thorough." He shakes his head. "Anyways, Sunset Heights." He points at a paragraph on the paper. "Right here."

Tails scans over the paper for a few moments. "Okay, yeah, those are pretty tight defenses. All the more reason we should be getting him out of there as soon as possible!"

"Assuming that he's even there."

"He _is_ there! This isn't just guesswork anymore!" He pats his hand against the screen. "This is science! Science doesn't lie!"

"Technically, there's an eighteen percent chance it's lying, by your own calculations."

Tails groans. "You know what I mean…"

Sonic nods slowly. "I do. And…you make some valid points. So I'll tell you what. Tomorrow…there will be a mission to rescue Hero."

Tails cheers, "Yes!"

Sonic holds up a finger. "But! …I'm not going to plan this mission."

"Well…how're you going to do it without a plan?"

"There will be a plan. Because _you_ are going to come up with it."

"Wha–… Me?"

"That's right. I'm putting you in charge of the whole thing. You're going to come up with a plan, and lead a team in to get the job done."

"Uh…are you sure? I mean, I-I'm not really…"

"Tails, I've seen you do a lot of amazing things over the years. I'm sure you can lead a mission. First, you're going to want to figure out who you're taking."

"Alright, umm…I guess I can run a few figures through TAL, and–"

"No no. No TAL. I want this plan to come straight out of that head of yours, beginning to end."

"But TAL can–"

"TAL is just a computer, Tails. I'm giving you this mission because I want to see what _you_ can do. First thing tomorrow morning, I want to hear everything you have. Got it?"

"Tomorrow…you mean today?"

"Oh, is it _that_ late? I guess asking you to have it done by morning is a little much, isn't it? Let's talk about it over lunch instead."

Tails nods. "Alright." He glances over Sonic's desk for a moment. "You know…I can probably run those intelligence reports through TAL, it could help you–"

"Tails. Either get to work, or get some sleep, I don't care which. That's an order."

Tails smiles. "Sleep first, I think."

—–—

 **Eggman's Hidden Base**

A dull black gem, cut like a Chaos Emerald, sits on an elevated pedestal, surrounded by many lights and pieces of scanning equipment all pointed directly at it. Eggman's mechanical minion, Orbot, works at a computer console hooked up to the equipment, analyzing all of the data as it comes in. "Confirmed, sir. It's…just a rock. Not a very valuable one, at that. No special properties of any kind."

Beside him, his blocky counterpart Cubot comments, "I think it's pretty. It would go great with my collection!" He reaches out to grab it, but Orbot smacks his hand away before quickly resuming his work.

Eggman rises from his throne, and slowly steps over to pick up the gem for himself. He turns it over in his hand a few times. He looks back to Heavy Gunner, who still stands before the throne. "And you say you found this on the battlefield?"

Gunner salutes. "Right in the middle of the crater, Chief."

"And no one has been there since the incident besides you?"

"That's right."

"Hmm…" Eggman tugs at his mustache as he contemplates.

Orbot suggests, "Could it have been planted there, sir? Part of the ploy to make us think they'd been killed?"

"In that moment, all they would've been concerned with is getting out with their lives. Except…" Eggman looks back down to the gem. "…for the new one. He had a foresight that Sonic lacks. This must be the real Moonstone, I'm certain of it."

"Which would mean…that one of them really was killed. But how did the other two escape?"

"I've witnessed this one change his form before. It would have been a simple matter for him to fool Blacklight by appearing to be all three of them, when Sonic and Shadow had already escaped."

"So what does this mean for us?"

"For one thing, it means that we can assume Shadow is very much alive, just like Sonic. For another…it means that we have a tool we may be able to use against them." Eggman drops the dulled Moonstone into Cubot's hands. Cubot stumbles with it for a moment, but manages to catch it before it hits the ground. "Put that in the vault for safekeeping."

"Sure thing, boss." Cubot exits, staring at the gem the whole way.

"Orbot! Get Heavy King on the line!"

"Yes, sir."

Eggman sits back in his throne and leans back as an image appears on the large screen positioned beneath the window, depicting a familiar crowned robot, Heavy King, the leader of the Hard Boiled Heavies. The gold scepter he holds, once topped by an orb of glass, now instead bears a decorative red ruby of a familiar shape. A scar-like weld line still gashes across the crown insignia on his chest plate. "What is your wish, Emperor?"

Eggman contemplates for a moment. "I've confirmed the existence of a Rebellion, led by Sonic the Hedgehog."

"And you wish me to take care of this Rebellion?"  
"No… I had something else in mind. These foes are extremely dangerous, and I will not underestimate them again. What we need…is an outside perspective. There's someone I want you to seek out for me. Arrange a personal meeting. I'll send you all the information we have."

"As you wish."

—–—

Sonic sits down with his plate of food beside Knuckles. The large tent they eat in is filled with folding tables and chairs, set up so that everyone can eat together. Near the entrance, Amy and Cream wait in line with empty plates to be served by a hairnet-wearing Charmy, while Vector, Espio, and Rouge are all sitting down at the next table over from Sonic and Knuckles, eating and chatting. Shadow and Omega are nowhere to be seen. The seat across from Sonic appears to be reserved for Tails, who also isn't present. Sonic stares at the empty seat for a while.

Knuckles nudges him in the shoulder. "I'm sure he's putting the finishing touches on it right now. You know how he gets, he just wants to make sure it's all perfect for you."

"Yeah." Sonic takes a berry from his plate, and pops it into his mouth. He looks down at his plate as he chews. There's quite a bit more food there than on the 'ideal meal' plate that Tails showed.

"You sure it's a good idea? Having Tails lead the mission?"

"He's third in command here. I'm sure he'll have to take charge at some point. He needs the leadership experience. Besides, I know he'll want me to be there. I'll make sure nothing goes wrong."

"If he doesn't have enough experience, why'd you make him third instead of me?"

"Aw, don't be jealous, Knuckles." Sonic chomps down on another berry. "No matter who's in charge, I want you there to back them up. That goes double if it's Tails. It wouldn't make sense for me to put him behind you, because that would mean he would only end up in charge if you aren't there. He'd be on his own. I'm sure you two will make a great team, if it ever comes down to it. If anything, your job is more important."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. And you're right, he _should_ get the experience. But as your advisor, I'm telling you now. Keep a close eye on him. Don't let him get into too much trouble."

"Of course."

Tails runs in through the tent entrance excitedly, and sits down in his seat without a plate. "I'm all set!"

Sonic gives a nod. "Alright Tails, let's hear it."

"So for an infiltration mission like this, I was thinking we should definitely keep the team small, no more than three of us."

"We're picking someone up, so three of us on the way in means four of us on the way out. Did you keep that in mind?"

"Yeah…is that alright?"

"This is _your_ mission. If you think it's alright, then it's up to you. So go on."

"Okay. So for the team, I was thinking me, you, and Rouge."

"Rouge? That's an interesting choice."

"Well, not getting caught when we're so outnumbered will be pretty important, so I thought Rouge's experience with stealth and infiltration would be helpful with that."

"What about Espio? He can go full-on invisible. Wouldn't that be better for stealth?"

"I considered that, but I think Rouge's military experience makes her a better choice for this mission. Besides, aren't you sending the Chaotix back out on another recon mission?"

"All good points. So what about me? Why am I coming?"

"A few reasons. For one thing, there's Chaos Control. That would be the fastest, safest way to get in and out as efficiently as possible."

"Good plan, but no. We can't risk our only Emerald by taking it into enemy territory."

"I was thinking you might say that, which is why I said a few reasons. You ran through the city quite a few times, you should know the layout better than most of us."

"Most. Knuckles here was in charge of the base we're heading for, for six months while I was out of commission. He would know the area better than me."

Knuckles nods. "That's right."

Tails continues, "But there is something else, and before you tell me that I'm letting my personal feelings get in the way, I promise it's objective. With this being my first mission and all, if anything goes wrong, I think it's a good idea to have our leader there to help manage things."

"Is that all?"

"Actually, there is one other thing. You were Hero's best friend. I think you should be there for him."

Sonic raises his eyebrows. "An emotional consideration? I don't think TAL would've calculated that. Sounds like you've put a lot of thought into all this."

Tails nods with a smile. "That's right."

"Well then, it sounds like a plan." He looks over to the next table. "Hey, Rouge!"

She looks up from her food. "Mm?"

"Tails here has a mission to brief you on!"

With a shrug, she stands to come over. Sonic and Tails rise as well.

Knuckles gives them a wave. "Good luck out there. Go find the Rookie."

—–—

 **Sunset Heights**

Sonic, Tails, and Rouge are crouched in a shadowy alleyway. Sonic carefully peeks out around the side, and quickly pulls his head back. He whispers quietly, "Two of them. They look pretty trigger-happy." He turns over to Tails. "Your mission. What do we do about them?"

Tails takes a moment to think. "If we go in head-on, we risk getting caught before they're all out." He looks to Rouge. "Think you can take them both out without getting seen?"

Rouge gives a smirk. "Child's play. …No offense." She leaps upwards, flying to the top of the building they stand under. She carefully looks over the side of the building to get a look at the two silver Egg Pawns that stand guard. She takes a leap and glides down with wings outstretched, landing in a silent crouch just behind and between the robots. She carefully creeps behind one of them, and taps it on the back. It turns around to look at the source of the touch, but Rouge stays constantly behind its back. Once it give up and turns back to its original position, she repeats the process with the next robot. Once they're both on alert, she moves back between them, still staying low. She taps both of them on the side at once, and they immediately turn and fire their laser cannons, blasting each other to pieces while she ducks underneath. Rouge stands up and gives Sonic and Tails the thumbs-up. "See? Easy."

They move out from their hiding place. Tails comments, "You didn't really have to make a show out of it."

"Didn't I? Just trying to impress my new leaders is all. I've learned it's usually a pretty good idea."

Tails moves on ahead. "Come on, the base is just through here." Sonic and Rouge follow him through the door the robots seemed to be guarding, into a stairwell leading down into a basement.

At the base of the stairs is a long hallway, leading to a wide metal door. The three approach the door slowly. Sonic looks to Tails. "Here we are. Ready to prove your theory?"

Tails gives a nod. "He's here. I know it."

Sonic indicates the door. "Well then, after you."

Tails takes a deep breath. Then he starts to pull the door open, flooding light into the old abandoned Resistance base. He calls out, "Hero! Hero, are you in there?"

Sonic calls as he move in through the open door, "Buddy, it's us! We're here to get you out!" Rouge and Tails move in behind him, and they all look around. Familiar wooden crates lie stacked against the walls, and one large blank screen still hangs connected to the main computer terminal. But there isn't another soul to be seen.

Tails looks down to the ground with a sigh. "He isn't here."

Sonic places a hand on his back. "Don't lose hope yet. He can't just wait in this room 24 hours a day. Maybe he left for something. We could wait here a while, see if he turns up."

Tails perks up. "I have a better idea. I can check the computer, see if he's tried to access it recently." Somewhat excitedly, Tails runs for the computer.

Sonic reaches a hand out after him. "Hey, wait!"

Tails' foot falls down on a floor panel that sinks into the ground from his weight. Then the ceiling above them explodes.

Sonic takes off as fast as he can go, diving at Tails to push him down to the ground, and they both tumble across the ground away from the source of the explosion. Rubble crashes to the ground, concealing both of them from view.

After a moment of shock, Rouge runs up to the wall of rock and cement. "Sonic, Tails, are you alright!? Can you hear me!?"

On the other side of wall, Sonic stumbles up to his feet. He and Tails are pinned in a small, dark corner of the room, boxed in on all sides. He calls back, "I think we're okay! But…" He looks around the small space. "…it looks like we're trapped!" Suddenly, he winces in pain and clutches at his shoulder.

Tails, back on his own feet, shouts with concern, "Sonic!"

"It's just a bruise…I'll be fine. What about you?"

Tails has to take a moment to think. "Umm…I'm fine, I don't think I got hurt."

Rouge yells, "Let's work on getting some of this rubble moved, we might be able to make a hole big enough for you to get out!" After a moment, the building starts to rumble.

Tails shouts, "No, stop! Move that rubble the wrong way, and the whole rest of the building might collapse in on us!" The shaking stops. "There's not a lot we can do about it right now…"

Sonic commands, "The robots are going to start showing up any minute now, you have to get out of here! Don't worry about us, we'll find our own way out!"

Rouge objects, "I can't just leave the two of you here!"

"They won't find us back here, we'll be fine! Just–" Rouge can be heard gasping loudly. "What is it!?"

"There's someone else here!"

"What do you mean!?" He waits for a response. But he doesn't get one. "Rouge? Rouge, answer me!"

Tails mutters, "They got her, didn't they…?"

Sonic turns to him with concern. "What? No, I'm sure she just had to make a quick exit. She's just following orders."

Tails buries his face in his hands. "This is all my fault…"

"Tails, don't say that…"

"But it is! This whole thing was _my_ stupid idea! Rouge got captured, we're stuck here, and Hero isn't even here!"

"What about those calculations your computer made? What went wrong?"

"It's not TAL's fault, it's mine. I didn't account for the possibility that the base might be boobytrapped. Eggman must've set a bomb knowing we'd come back here. That would've changed the calculations."

"Tails, no one can know everything. If you did, you wouldn't need a computer in the first place. But there is one thing you have, that no computer can ever calculate. That's your intuition. TAL gave you numbers. But that's all they ever were. Numbers. I approved of this mission because you _believed_ that Hero would be here, not because of those numbers."

"But my belief was wrong! And now it might get us all killed!"

"Tails…what I'm trying to say is that this is _my_ fault. I got it in my head that I had to teach you some sort of lesson. I didn't realize…that I was pushing you into this before you were ready. I'm sorry."

"Lesson? What do you mean, lesson? I thought we were here to get Hero."

"We are, but…when you found that computer…immediately, I saw you becoming…obsessed. You were looking at the thing more like a childhood friend than a piece of hardware. Tails, you are the smartest guy I know. Maybe the smartest guy in the world. And I was afraid that if I didn't do anything, you would start trusting every decision you ever make to TAL. What's the point of being smart when a computer does all your thinking for you? I just wanted the chance to show you what you can do, _without_ any technology. And maybe…I was a little…" He mutters something too quietly to hear.

"What?"

"Nevermind, it's nothing. Just forget it."

"What is it?"

"Jealous, okay!? I was jealous! You're my best buddy, Tails. And I was deluded enough to think that…you cared about TAL more than you cared about me."

Tails tries to suppress a chuckle. But he fails, and starts to double over in full-on laughter. After a moment, Sonic can't help but join him, and the two share in a long bout of laughter, trapped together in the small, dark space. Finally, Tails starts to regain some composure. "Is that…really what all this was about?"

"I knew it wasn't true, but…I'm no computer. I let my emotions get the best of me."

"Sonic…" Tails looks down to the ground, and shifts his weight around awkwardly. "…in a way…you weren't wrong. TAL…helped get me through some rough times. It sort of _was_ like a childhood friend. I guess I got so caught up in those memories…I did get a little bit obsessed. But I mean, come on." He takes on a bit of a smirk. "You know how we genius types get. I would've been over it in a week."

"Would you really?"

Tails has to think about that for a moment. "…Probably."

"You know…" Sonic lets out a bit of a chuckle. "…instead of being jealous for each other all the time, maybe we should just spend some more time together?"

Tails gestures around at the piles of rubble that wall them in. "I don't think we have much of a choice right now."

"It's a little cramped in here. I was actually thinking more along the lines of a beach day."

Tails gives him a knowing look. "Really? You want to try that again? Because I'm beginning to think we might be cursed."

"Come on, I know you don't believe in curses. We'll make it work. It's a promise." He opens his arms as wide as he can in the cramped space. "Now come here and give me a hug, little bro."

Tails happily wraps his arms around Sonic's midsection, and the two embrace.

Sonic speaks softly, "I'm sorry, Tails. For everything. I know I haven't been there for you recently. But I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere. We're going to get through this, together." They finally separate. "But first, we need to get out of here." He steps back and takes a renewed look at the wall that seals them in. "You're the smart one here. Is there anything we can do? Anything at all?"

Tails looks across the rubble very carefully. "Right now…the rubble is the only thing left holding up the rest of the building. If we remove too much of it, the whole building comes down. If we were fast enough…we might be able to make it out before that happens."

"But we risk getting crushed."

"Exactly. There's no telling how long it would take, it could be minutes, or less than a second. But…there is a possibility…a slight one…that there's a small area of the rubble we might be able to remove without compromising the overall integrity of the structure."

"Where would that be?"

Tails hesitantly lifts up a finger, and traces it around whatever patterns he can find in the darkness. "It's…hard to tell… And I can't test any of it without putting us at risk."

"So we only get one shot."

Tails gasps as he realizes something. "I can't be certain…but I know what can!" He pulls out his Handheld device, still attached to a familiar black box.

"You brought TAL? Here? Seriously? After I specifically told you–"

"Hey, I was obsessed, remember? It was just in case. And I was right, because now we need it." He starts to scan the Handheld up and down across the rubble, feeding all of the data into TAL.

Sonic puts a hand on his shoulder. "Wait." Tails looks up to him questioningly. "I want you to put it away. Just for a minute." Slowly, Tails drops the computer setup down to his side. "Good. Now I want you to think…very carefully. And I want you to tell me where you think the spot is."

"But–"

Sonic puts a hand up. "You can ask TAL. But I'm asking you first. Use your intuition."

"What can I do that TAL can't?"

"It's like I've been saying. Intuition."

"But that's the same thing as guessing!"

"But it isn't!" Sonic thinks for a moment on how to explain. "There's a lot of information, up there in a person's head. Even the stuff you aren't really aware of. Think about it. When that bomb first went off, you were there. You saw how the rubble fell, how it all stacked into place behind you. Maybe it all happened in a flash, maybe you don't think you remember any of it, but that's what your intuition does. It tells you how to answer the questions you don't think you know yourself. It's like everyone's own personal TAL. You have that information locked up in your head, but this TAL out here doesn't. Now use that advantage, and show me the spot."

Tails lets out a loud sigh as he takes another look. But finally, he comes to a conclusion. He points to a spot upwards and to their left, a small area with only smaller chunks of rubble. "I think it's here."

Sonic nods. "And TAL?"

Tails looks back to his screen, and enters in a few last bits of data. After a moment, new readouts appear on the screen. Tails doesn't seem to like what he sees. He slowly points down to an area to their right. "TAL says it's there."

Sonic takes a sharp intake of breath. "Alright…what are the odds?"

Tails hesitates for a moment. "Fifty-one percent."

"That's…not great. Could be worse, but…not great. And…what does it say about the spot you picked out?"

"…Forty-two percent."

Sonic gives a slow nod. "Not that much worse."

"There's something else. Moving the rubble one chunk at a time…is much more likely to cause an instability. Odds go down significantly. Our only chance is to remove the whole area at once."

"Alright. So what if I hit it? Real hard?"

Tails shakes his head. "You'd only end up hurting yourself. And maybe destabilizing the structure in the process. What we need…is some sort of contained, directed explosion. I could probably build a device that could do that, but I don't have the–…" He looks down to the machines in his hands, and realizes that isn't true.

"Could you really do it with those?"

"…Probably."

Sonic once again places a hand on his shoulder, this time in comfort. "This is still your mission. If you want to try finding another way–"

"There is no other way." He looks down to his machine in sorrow. Slowly, he starts to enter in one last command. 'GOODNIGHT.'

Text on the screen appears in answer. 'Goodnight, Tails. See you tomorrow.' After a moment, the screen goes black as the program shuts down. Tails can't repress a sniffle.

A voice from the other side of the wall shouts, "Hey guys! Still breathing in there!?"

Sonic and Tails both perk up. "Rouge!"

"Not just me! Stand back, we're gonna blow the wall!"

Tails objects, "Wait, there's a certain spot you'll need to do it!" After a moment, he realizes he still doesn't know which.

Sonic nods him on. "I trust you, Tails. Do you trust yourself?"

Tails looks down at his blank screen. But then he looks resolutely back up at the rubble wall. He moves left, to the spot he first chose, and knocks against the rubble there. "Can you hear that!? Right here!"

Rouge answers, "Loud and clear! Now get back!"

Tails backs up to meet Sonic in the farthest corner of the room. Sonic protectively places a shoulder in front of him. "We're ready!"

Rouge's muffled voice can be heard instructing, "Do it."

"Burst!"

With a loud bang, a section of the rubble wall is blasted in, throwing chunks into the small corner of the room, and letting a shaft of light flood in. Sonic blocks several pieces of rubble from hitting Tails. They both brace for the possibility of the building collapsing. But everything goes still. Sonic gives Tails a smirk. "Good choice."

Three faces peek through the newly-created hole. Rouge is joined by a red-furred wolf with thick black glasses, and his partner, a Red Burst Wisp.

Sonic and Tails shout with glee, "Hero!"

The Wisp lets out a squeak as it soars in through the opening, and moves right up to Tails, nuzzling against the side of his face. Tails can't help but laugh. "Good to see you too, Bruno."

The Wisp, Bruno, moves on to Sonic, and starts to jabber excitedly in its alien language.

Tails turns his Handheld back on. "Hold on, I'm translating… He says… 'We wanted to wait for you guys here, but Baldy Nosehair set a trap. We were worried you'd come looking or us and trigger the trap, so we've been staying nearby.'"

Sonic nods. "So they really were here. Guess that makes you two for two."

Rouge spouts impatiently, "Don't leave us hanging out here, guys! We took care of the first wave of robots out there, but there's more on the way!"

Sonic answers, "I think the four of us can handle a couple of robots, no problem." Bruno lets out an angry squeak. "Sorry, five of us." Suddenly, the room starts to shake. "Uh oh."

Tails shouts, "The building is destabilizing! Let's get out of here!"

Sonic indicates for Tails to lead the way. Tails climbs up to the hole and crawls his way through. Behind him, Sonic has to curl into a ball to fit through the small tunnel. Bruno follows behind them. Together, they all run out through the open metal doors. As they run alongside each other, Sonic and Hero share a fist bump. As they disappear through the door, the ceiling behind them collapses all the way, dumping rubble into all of what little remained of the old Resistance base.

—–—

Sonic holds up a shard of the Master Emerald. "Do you, Hero, and you, Bruno, swear to fight with your lives for the cause of this Rebellion?" They both give a simultaneous nod, as Tails and Rouge watch on. By the look of the shaded grass outside of the cave's entrance, night appears to have fallen. No one else seems to be present. "Do you swear to uphold our values and beliefs, even at war, so that we never become the enemy?" They nod once again. "Do you swear to protect this shard as best as you possibly can, to keep it with you at all times, so that it never falls into the hands of Eggman?" They give one last nod. "Well then…" He places the shard into Hero's hands. "…welcome to the Rebellion."

Tails and Rouge applaud as Hero pulls the shard up close to his chest.

"Now, let's all get something to eat. I think Tails knows the 'ideal meal' to serve." They all move out as a group.

On their way, Tails approaches Sonic closely. "Sonic…there's something I want to talk to you about."

"Really? I was sure we'd covered everything."

"Actually, more like something I want to give you."

"Oh?"

Tails pulls out a familiar black box, now hooked up to a shiny-looking new tablet screen with a matching coat of black paint on the outside. "I want you to have TAL."

"What!? You're kidding!"

Tails wears a big grin. "Nope. It's all yours. I think it'll be a big help managing all those intelligence reports. Watch, I even made it voice activated!" He clears his throat. "TAL, calculate…the fastest route to the Mess Tent." The screen lights up, showing a basic diagram of the Rebellion camp with several labeled tents and and cave entrances. A straight red line is drawn from their current location across to a tent on the opposite side of the canyon. A line of text on the top of the screen also reads, 'Good evening, Sonic.'

Sonic can't keep the smile off of his face. He casts a questioning look to Tails, who nods him on. He cautiously takes the computer from his hands. He turns it around and looks at it for a while, running his fingers along the engraving at the bottom. "You sure about this?"

"Absolutely. And…I have something to admit." He looks around to make sure Rouge and Hero aren't listening. "TAL actually does stand for something. 'Tails' Assistant Logical Interactive Operator'. TALIO, or TAL for short."

Sonic suppresses a chuckle. A look from Tails silences him. He thinks for another moment. "So…now that it's mine, would that make it SAL?"

Tails thinks on that for a moment. "Eh…better stick with TAL."

"Agreed." Sonic takes another moment to look at it. "This…this really means a lot, buddy."

"You can thank me by using it to win this war."

Sonic nods. "Count on it."

—–—

In a darkened room lit only by a single overhead light, Eggman sits on one side of a simple metallic table. Across from him, a pair of piercing blue eyes stares out, belonging to a figure leaning back in his chair, so as to keep in the shadows. His brown and white boots just barely reach into the light.

Eggman opens his arms wide. "Welcome. I'm quite glad you could make it all the way out here. I understand it's…quite the trip for you."

The figure in the darkness moves his head to the side slightly. He speaks with growling, slightly high-pitched voice, "You could say that."

"Well, I'm sure you know why you're here. I have a…business proposition for you."

"Is that so? Do tell."

"There are some people I want to be rid of. That is your line of work, isn't it?"

"On occasion. It depends."

"I can assure you, you will be rewarded quite handsomely. At present, my riches are effectively limitless. So what do you say?"

"What do I say? What if I told you…" The figure tips down his head, moving the brim of a wide brown hat into the light. "…that I anticipated your needs before you even knew you needed them?" He leans back even farther, taking the hat back into the darkness. "I set a trap for your little Rebellion weeks ago, which was set off earlier this evening."

Eggman is flabbergasted. "A trap!? Well did it work!? Did you get any of them!?"

"Oh, it was never intended to 'get' anyone. There was certainly a chance, of course. But I knew they'd find their way out. No, my only intention…was to learn. To gauge how they would respond to the pressure. To analyze their strengths and weaknesses. If you wish to defeat this Rebellion, that is how you'll have to do it."

"Well…consider me impressed. I never expected you to be quite so…thorough."

"It's been a long time since I last encountered the hedgehog. I've been hard at work. I won't be messing up a job again."

"Well then, you're hired. Welcome to the Empire."

The figure gives a toothy smirk that reflects a glint of light for just a moment. "Anything for my favorite Doctor. This troublemaking Rebellion will be crushed soon enough."

The two laugh together, and the sound of it reverberates through the dark room.

 **To be continued…**


	40. S1 E3: Thief's Honor

**Emerald Canyon - The Rebellion Base**

A figure moves through the darkness of the night. He appears to be an animoid raccoon, with a bushy ringed tail, and black markings on his face that resemble a mask. He wears an open, dark blue outer jacket, and matching blue boots, as well as a brown belt with a pouch hanging from it. Carefully checking his surroundings, he darts into the mouth of a cave in the canyon wall.

The cave inside is really more of an alcove, ending in a solid wall a short distance away. But the walls are lined with stacks of crates, filled with supplies. Seeming to know his way around, the Raccoon moves right for the crates in the back of the room, and begins rummaging through.

"So, you're the one who's been taking all our stuff?" The Raccoon looks up with surprise to see Knuckles the Echidna, sitting atop the tallest stack of crates. He jumps off, landing on the ground with surprising grace. "Did you really think we wouldn't catch you?"

The Raccoon stares at Knuckles very carefully. Then he slowly bows his head downwards, as if in shame. "I'm…just trying to survive."

"Aren't we all?"

The Raccoon looks up again with interest.

Knuckles reaches back into the crate behind him, and digs around for something for himself. "Heads up." He tosses the object in an arc through the air, so that it lands right in the Raccoon's hands. It appears to be a shiny red apple.

The Raccoon looks from the apple to Knuckles in confusion. "What's this?"

"Eggman's making things hard for all of us. A little advice for you. Think about who you're stealing from. We're not your enemies."

The Raccoon lets out a single amused "Huh."

"You can keep that. But I don't want to see you back here again. Not unless it's to help our cause."

The Raccoon lets out a suave, " _Right_." He turns to leave. But he stops at the mouth of the cave, to look back at Knuckles. "Thanks for the advice." He bites down on the apple as he strolls out.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 3**

 **Thief's Honor**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, February 28th, 0 A.E. Knuckles the Echidna reporting.**_

 _I finally caught our thief last night. Some nerve he had, skimming off of the good guys, and every night this week, too. My guess is that living under Eggman's rule just didn't work for him. We all know there are a lot of people out there suffering because of him. And any enemy of Eggman's could be an ally of ours. I tried my best to play it cool, even invited this guy to join us. But personally, I'm glad that scumbag refused. The second I looked at him, I knew I didn't like him. There's just something about him. I let him go, of course. But I don't think he'll be bothering us again._

—–—

Knuckles sits next to Sonic in the Mess Tent, engaged in telling a riveting story that has everyone's attention. "…So then I shouted after that Coon, 'That's right! You'd better run!' I don't think he'll be bothering us again."

Sonic stares at him with disbelief. "Seriously? You fought him, hand-to-hand, for _two hours_? And then he just ran?"

"Well…maybe I exaggerated a bit here and there."

Sonic sighs and shakes his head. "Knuckles, what am I going to do with you?"

"Don't worry, I said it all accurate in the log, I swear."

"Oh, you'd better hope you did."

Rouge sits down with a plate of food in the empty seat across from Knuckles. "So, what's all this I'm hearing about your little scuffle last night, Knuckies?"

Knuckles leans back in his chair and crosses his arms with confidence. "Oh, it was nothing. Just some thieving Raccoon who thought he was sly enough to steal from us."

Rouge takes on an odd look. She mutters quietly, "Sly…?" A little more loudly, she questions, "You said he was a Raccoon?"

Sonic answers, "Yeah. Same guy who's been stealing from us all week, apparently."

"Well…what if he comes back again?"

Knuckles waves a hand dismissively. "Pff. He won't come back, I scared him off."

"Oh, and we're supposed to trust your word on that? You don't have the best track record with your storytelling, Knuckles."

Sonic responds, "If you think it's a serious concern, I can have someone–"

Rouge immediately volunteers, "I'll do it." When she realizes everyone is staring at her, she adds, "I want to see just how good of a thief this guy really is. Besides, I prefer the night life anyways, I don't mind keeping watch for one night."

Sonic nods. "Alright. Keep an eye on our storage area tonight. And report to me tomorrow."

—–—

Rouge hangs upside down from the roof the cave above all the stacks of supplies, carefully watching the entrance where moonlight floods in. Right on cue, a figure peeks in. Scanning across the tops of all the crates, he finds no one. Shaking his head as if in disappointment, the Raccoon makes his way in, once again moving straight for the back of the room.

Rouge drops off from the ceiling, gracefully turning and spreading her wings to land softly in a crouch on the ground directly in his path. She straightens up to look him in the eyes, just inches from his face. "So…it really _is_ you."

The Raccoon wears a big smirk on his face. "Ahh… Rouge… It's been a while."

"What are you doing here, Sylvester?"

"Aww, aren't you happy to see me? Where's my kiss?"

Rouge puts a hand on his chest, and shoves him back hard enough to slam him into the nearest wall of crates, pinning him there. "Talk, Sly!"

The Raccoon, Sly, grunts under the pressure, "Reminds me of old times." He stares at the heart-shaped plate she wears on her chest. "Hot outfit. Really brings out your eyes. Compensating for something?"

For that remark, she slaps him across the face with her free hand.

He still can't wipe away his smirk. "Yep. _Just_ like old times."

"Did you come here…just to find me?"

Sly raises an eyebrow. "I promised I would, didn't I?"

"The way I remember it, you were spouting death threats."

"Well…I had a lot of time to think behind those bars. Why don't you just let me down, and we can talk _all_ about it. Over dinner, maybe?"

Rouge rolls her eyes. "I'm not letting you go for one second."

Sly changes the subject again. "So who was that guy I met last night? New boyfriend?"

"What? Knuckles? No."

"You sure? I thought he seemed like your type. Stubborn and hot headed, but pretending to be cooler than he really is."

"You know, I'd forgotten how you never shut up. Just tell me why you really came."

Sly closes his eyes, finally taking on a serious face. "I really do want to talk to you. There's just…one thing I never understood. Why? Why'd you sell me out?"

—–—

 **Empire City**

 **June 9th, 3 B.E. – Four years ago**

 **Several weeks before the events of Sonic Adventure 2**

In a polished glass case, the brilliant blue Chaos Emerald is erected on display, in the very center of a large jewelry store. The glass doors and windows are completely covered by steel shutters, as the shop is closed for the night. A single guard walks on patrol. High above, a pair of blue eyes stares through the grated ventilation shaft in the ceiling, watching the guard's every move.

The eyes belong to Rouge the Bat, hiding in the narrow shaft, though she almost might not be recognized at first. The hair on her head is grown long, styled off to one side so that it partially covers one eye. On the other side of her head, a small earring is pierced near the top of her ear. Her one-piece outfit looks a bit more comfortable, made of a soft, dark purple fabric, and exposing most of her legs and arms. She also wears a belt with a heart-shaped buckle.

As young Rouge watches, the guard on the ground cautiously moves through a door in the back of the store, with signs marking it as the public restroom. Rouge speaks, apparently into a communicator, "That's it, he's gone."

The voice of Sly answers back, "Excellent. Three minutes on the clock. Dispersing the gas…now."

While Rouge removes the grate separating her from the air below, a white, misty gas begins to pour in through the ventilation shaft, which escapes down into the store below. While the gas moves, Rouge questions, "Security cameras?"

"Taken care of. Have a little faith, babe."

Rouge bites her lip for a moment, but then starts to cough. "Did you really have to pump the gas through my only hiding space?"

"Hey, we both knew this plan had to be rushed. I promise you, they won't be keeping that Emerald here long. Not with a price tag like that." After a pause, he continues, "You have two minutes left. How's it looking down there?"

As the gas moves downwards through the air, it reveals what was invisible before. A network of crisscrossing yellow security lasers, reaching most of the way down to the Emerald. She snarks back, "Piece of cake. Have a little faith, Ringtail." Immediately, she dives down through the opening, elegantly twisting and flapping through the air, narrowly avoiding each laser she passes. She silently lands just beside the pedestal holding the Emerald.

After a moment to look at the gem inside of the case, she pulls out two objects: a roll of tape, and what appears to be a thin nail file. Very carefully, she slides the nail file underneath one corner of the glass case, then rips off a few strips of tape with her teeth, which she uses to stick the file firmly in place. "Pressure sensor has been fooled."

"You're behind schedule, you have to pick up the pace."

Ignoring him, she cautiously wraps her hands around the case, and carefully lifts it up, setting it gently on the ground beside her. The Chaos Emerald is completely exposed. After a moment of hesitation, she grabs for it. Everything remains quiet.

Rouge slowly turns the Emerald over in her hand, getting a close look at it. "I…I have it. It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

"More beautiful than _me_? I ought to be offended."

Before Rouge can answer, another voice shouts, "You there!" The guard stands in front of the door he exited through earlier, weapon raised and pointed at Rouge. His eyes dart from the glass case on the floor, to the Emerald in her hand. "Stop, thief!" He fires off two rounds from his gun.

Rouge ducks down under the cover of the pedestal for momentary safety. "Sly, I'm pinned down, I need cover! Sly?" The alarm has been triggered, and flashing red lights now flood the smokey room, to the sound of an incessant wail.

Not getting any answer, Rouge carefully peeks out from her cover, just in time to see a blue and grey blur of motion strike at the guard, knocking the weapon free from his hand, and sending it sliding across the ground. Sly, wearing a dark red backpack and a lighter blue sweater, stands crouched in front of the guard, wielding a long wooden staff in one hand. He glances back to meet her eyes for a moment. "Get out of here, go!"

Looking over to see the spot Sly entered from, a small round hole made in the shuttered window, Rouge makes a run for it. Halfway out through the hole, she glances back to see that the guard has drawn a baton in one hand and a taser in the other. Sly leaps up to attack with his own weapon. Rouge makes her own leap, flying out into the night.

Leveling out at the height of most of the rooftops in this area of the city, Rouge takes one last glance at the jewelry store, where a red light still periodically flashes through her exit hole. The alarm can still be faintly heard. She looks instead back to the Emerald in her hand as she flies along through the air. "You're finally mine…" She gasps and weaves off to the side, just in time to avoid some sort of energy bolt that was fired through the air.

Down on the street below, covered behind a blockade of strobing police vehicles, a group of soldiers and robots alike all have their weapons pointed up at Rouge. Without saying a word, they continue to fire. As she dodges two more energy bolts, Rouge exclaims, "How'd they get here so fast!?" She dodges around another wave of fire, only to find a cable wrapping around her boot. "Uh oh."

The soldier with the grappling gun yanks down hard, sending Rouge crashing down into the center of the blockaded area. She slams into the ground hard enough to see stars.

Through the spots in Rouge's fading vision, she sees a pair of polished black shoes belonging to a tall figure approaching her. Though she can hardly hear him through the ringing in her ears, the man speaks in a commanding voice, "Rouge the Bat, you are hereby placed under arrest by order of the Guardian Units of Nations." Then everything goes black.

—–—

Rouge's cuffs clamor loudly as she tries to pull up her hands. But she is cuffed securely to the table. Slowly, she starts to take a look around her new cell. The bars of the cell don't have any door, but instead appear to be able to remotely lift up all at once. There aren't any obvious entrances on the other side of the bars, either. Just another empty room, the walls of which are periodically plastered with a familiar 'G' emblem. The cell itself is quite dark, covered in dingy metal plating on all sides except for the wall of cell bars. But the walls have another intriguing feature. Every square inch of wall space appears to have been drawn on in white, leaving it covered in diagrams, figures, and mathematical equations, all completely unintelligible. There's something very familiar about it all.

There is a shudder as something starts moving too far off to the left of the cell to be seen. Two voices can be heard speaking quietly as they enter. Soon, they step into view. One of them is a run-of-the-mill human GUN soldier, holding a blue key card in one hand. The other man, the same who spoke to Rouge before she lost consciousness, wears a vest decorated with honors and rank insignias, has a silvery white head of hair, and a mismatching set of red and blue eyes. The GUN High Commander. He also carries several folders full of papers and files. He nods to the soldier, who moves off to the right of the cell, sliding the card through a control panel, causing the bars to raise. The Commander steps inside. Then he turns back to the soldier. "Leave us alone."

"But, sir–"

"That's an order."

"Of course. Yes, sir." The soldier enters a code on the panel that causes the bars to lower back down into place, then, with a salute, exits the way he came.

Now alone with Rouge, the Commander steps over slowly, and takes a seat at the chair set up opposite to Rouge's. He folds his hands on the table. He begins, "I'm sure you're probably wondering what's going on here. This is Prison Island, the most secure facility on the planet. This is where we keep criminals who are too dangerous to keep in with normal society. I was hoping to give you better accommodations here, but unfortunately, this is the only cell we have available. That writing on the walls…was made by an insane Professor, who almost destroyed an inhabited space station about fifty years ago."

Rouge looks carefully up and down the Commander, but doesn't say a word.

"Are you feeling alright? I hope you weren't mistreated on the way here."

Rouge's only answer is to blow some of her long hair out of her eye.

The Commander lets out a sigh. "Miss Rouge, this whole thing will go much easier for both of us if you just cooperate." He waits for a reply, but gets none. "Here, let me help you with those cuffs." He takes out a small key, and reaches over to unlock the handcuffs that lock Rouge down to the table.

The moment she's free, Rouge pulls her hands back, rubbing at her wrists. But she still doesn't say anything.

"I know what you're probably thinking right now. 'Is this guy for real?' We both know you could easily take me out in a hand-to-hand fight. You might even be able to find a way out of this cell. But that would be the end of it. There are armed guard robots on every floor. And even if you got past them, there would be nowhere to go. We've held criminals here more devious than yourself, but no one's ever escaped. It would be in your best interest not to try. Now…will you talk to me?"

After a pause, Rouge finally answers, "I'm not saying a word until I get a lawyer. I know my rights."

The Commander lets out another sigh. "Rouge, you've been arrested as an international criminal by order of GUN and the President himself. I'm afraid you don't have very many rights. That being said, I'd like to make your stay here as brief and painless as possible. If all goes well, you'll be out within the hour."

This catches Rouge's attention. "Fine then. Skip the formalities and cut to the chase. What do you want from me?"

For the first time, the Commander smiles. "Very well. Let's start…" He reaches into his pocket "…with this." He pulls out the sparkling blue Chaos Emerald, apparently confiscated from Rouge. He places it down on the table, well within Rouge's reach. "This is the object you stole last night. How much do you know about it?"

Rouge stares at the gem with a hint of longing. "The store had it labelled as a Chaos Emerald. I know a thing or two about gems, but…I can't say I've ever heard of that particular variety before. Color doesn't seem right for an Emerald, either. But the price tag on that thing?" She lets out a low whistle. "Never seen so many zeros in one place. And I've met a _lot_ of zeros over the years."

"So you really didn't know?"

"Know what?"

The Commander thinks for a moment. Then he takes out one of the folders he brought in. "Let's move on. Are you familiar with the incident that occurred in Station Square several weeks ago?"

"Wasn't there a flood or something? Billions in damage, from what I heard. I'll bet that Chaos Emerald could pay for it, though. Is that what all this is about?"

"This…was no ordinary flood." He opens the folder, and digs through until he finds a photograph. He pulls it out, and flips it around to show her. "This was taken during the incident."

Rouge examines the photo closely. It depicts a familiar city, flooded to ruin. As well as a a creature larger than any of the nearby skyscrapers, dragonoid and covered in tentacles, appearing to be made of the water itself. There is also a small golden streak barely noticeable in the corner. Rouge can hardly suppress her laughter. "What kind of hoax is this?" The Commander keeps a completely stern face. "This _is_ a hoax…right?"

"I assure you, it's completely authentic."

Rouge's amusement has transformed to a slightly fearful surprise. She takes a renewed look at Perfect Chaos. "Then…what is it?"

"Some say it's the God of Destruction itself. Our scientists believe it to be a mutated form of the creatures called Chao."

"A Chao? You expect me to believe that _thing_ is supposed to be a cute little Chao?"

"It doesn't really matter. Whatever it is, it's gone now. What's important is that all of this…" He waves his hand over the folder and the photo. "…happened because of the Chaos Emeralds."

"Emeralds? So there's more than one?"

"There are seven. Possibly eight, we're still looking into rumors of the 'Master Emerald'."

"And you're telling me that this thing leveled an entire city just to get its hands on a bunch of old rocks? I mean, I like jewels too, but even I wouldn't take it that far."

"You misunderstand. This creature's power wasn't unleashed _for_ the Emeralds. It was unleashed _by_ the Emeralds. A madman by the name of Dr. Eggman was feeding them to it."

"You aren't making any sense here."

The Commander picks up the Chaos Emerald, and holds it out right in front of her. "This is not just a jewel, Miss Rouge. This is one of the seven most powerful energy sources known to exist in our universe. As far as we can tell, even this one contains a near-infinite amount of energy. All seven…could easily destroy our planet. Last night, you stole this Emerald, and instantly became a threat to international security."

"So that's why you locked me up here? Because I accidentally stole a magic rock that a giant monster used to destroy a city? Forgive me if I find this all a little far-fetched."

"We live in a changing world, Rouge. Hundreds of years ago, the existence of your kind was nothing but myth and legend to human civilization. Now we coexist together in our cities." He clenches his hand around the Emerald. "This is just one more myth coming true. We're living in a new turning point for our history. If we do nothing, then there will be nothing but dark times ahead. There are forces beyond our control at work here. But we're going to do everything we can to keep the world safe from these forces."

"It sounds to me like you're getting ready to ask me something."

"That's right. We've been keeping an eye on you for quite some time. We know your skills. This Emerald…was a test. And of course, you passed. You've proven your worth. So now, we want to hire you as an Agent of GUN."

"I'm sorry…did I hear that right? I'm a 'threat to international security'…so you're offering me a job?"

"As a matter of fact, it was the President of the United Federation who requested you personally."

"The President?" The Commander nods. "Sure. Okay, why not? I'll keep going along with this. So what exactly does this job entail?"

"As I said before, keeping the world safe from the Chaos Emeralds is of vital importance to us. Your primary task would be to track down and gather the Emeralds, and deliver them here to the vault on Prison Island. Of course, under the employ of GUN, you could be assigned to any mission at any time. Given your talents, that would typically mean missions of infiltration, espionage, and, if necessary…confiscation. Effectively, you would be a spy."

"So let me get this straight. I'd be pardoned of all crimes I've ever committed, I get to steal the most valuable jewels and artifacts in the world, legally…and you'd pay me for it?"

"And you'd be making the world a better place while you do it. Of course, as a secret agent, your Emerald-hunting missions would require you to keep a cover. As far as anyone else is concerned, you would just be an obsessive jewel hunter, looking to get your hands on the rarest prizes. I'm sure that won't be too hard for you to manage."

"Sounds like fun. Why do I feel like there's a catch?"

"That depends on what you consider to be a catch. There's one important topic we haven't discussed yet. I think you know what I'm talking about."

Rouge nods slowly. "Sly. What have you done with him?"

"Nothing at all. He's at your hideout now, awaiting your return."

"I'm guessing he doesn't get a job, too?"

"I don't think that would be wise." He takes out the other folder. "As part of this whole process, we had psychological profiling done on the two of you." He takes a paper out of the folder, and starts to read, "'Sylvester 'Sly' the Raccoon. Obsessive, devious, and unstable. But good with people.' Any objections?"

Rouge thinks for a moment. "No, that…pretty much sums him up."

The Commander continues to read through the file. "Quite frankly, it wasn't hard to determine that, even if Sylvester _were_ a good fit for GUN, he wouldn't want anything to do with us. Much like yourself, he is a threat to international security. He has the ability to get Chaos Emeralds into all the wrong hands, to people like Eggman who would pay any price for them. And unlike yourself, we can't put that ability to work for us. There's only one option. He needs to be put away."

Rouge goes silent for quite some time. "…What do you want me to do?"

—–—

 **Present day**

Rouge tugs hard on the rope, tightening it as much as she can, firmly tying Sly to the chair. "There. Now you're staying right there until everyone else wakes up. Then we'll decide what to do with you."

"What to do with me? There gonna be an execution or something?"

Rouge glares at him. "We may not have our own prison, but there's no way we're letting a scoundrel like you go free. We'll figure something out."

"So you're locking me up again? I guess some things never change."

"I guess they don't."

Sly sits in silence for a while. "So…the feds really did get you. And you cut a deal. Somehow, I always hoped it would be something bigger than that."

"It started a long time before that, Sylvester. I wanted out. You never noticed."

"I offered you an out. You stabbed me in the back instead."

"I didn't just want out of the crime. I wanted out of our partnership."

"You wanted to break up? But…we were together for years…"

"What the Commander said about you was right, and I knew it. We just weren't the same. You were always in it for the thrill of it. You _liked_ the life of crime. And you didn't care if people got hurt along the way. You would've been bored without it, your 'out' would never have lasted long. I knew I couldn't change that about you. I knew I couldn't stay with you."

"For you, I would've tried. Why didn't you just talk to me about it?"

"We both know how that would've turned out. Obsessive and unstable, that's how you always were. The same way you were obsessed with that last job. I don't know what it was about that ring–"

Sly viciously shouts, "Don't you _dare_ talk about that!"

" _There's_ the Sly I'm talking about. One touchy subject, and off you go. But even after all that…I still did it for you."

—–—

 **Four years ago**

Sly peeks through the old-fashioned window shutters, through a grimey window to the night skyline outside. The room he waits in appears to be quite high up in the sky, judging by the car lights crisscrossing through the streets far down below. He pulls back, and sits back against the wall with a sigh. The room has a low, slanted ceiling, and the walls are completely unpainted, apparently the attic of some tall skyscraper. The hideout is surprisingly full, with large piles of unsold gold, jewels, and other valuable trinkets, likely all stolen.

Suddenly, faint footsteps can be heard beneath the floor. Sly stands up in an instant, readying his staff at his side, prepared to defend himself against whatever intruder lurks beneath. A large panel on the floor, apparently the entrance to the hideout, starts to rumble. Then it flips over to the side as Rouge climbs her way in.

"Rouge!" Before she can even stand all the way up, Sly wraps his arms tightly around her in an embrace. His staff can be heard clattering to the floor. Rouge gasps at the sudden touch, but relaxes after a moment. Finally, Sly separates from her, still holding her by the shoulders. "You made it! You were gone so long, I was worried that…that you were caught."

Rouge thinks back to her conversation with the Commander.

 _"…What do you want me to do?"_

 _"It's very simple. We already know about your plan to rob the Empire City Museum tomorrow. All you have to do…is make sure he goes through with the plan. We'll have a trap set, he won't have any chance to escape."_

 _"And then what?"_

 _"His sheer number of criminal offenses would typically land him a life sentence. Maybe several. If we get your help in this, I'll do what I can to reduce that sentence. A long time from now, he can still be a free man. In the meantime, you would be free to visit him as you please."_

 _"And if I refuse?"_

 _"Then I would suggest that you get comfortable. Because you won't be leaving this cell. Ever. And he certainly won't be seeing you again."_

Back in reality, Rouge lies, "You know me better than that. I was being tailed. I had to wait them out all day to make sure I'd lost them."

Sly nods with a smile. "Of course. So do you…still have it?"

"Oh, you mean _this_?" She proudly displays the Chaos Emerald.

 _In her memories, the Commander continued, "Of course, you'll have to take the Emerald with you to avoid suspicion."_

 _"And what if I…kept the Emerald, warned Sly about your plan, and both of us disappeared before you ever realize you'd been duped?"_

 _The Commander shook his head. "There are fates worse than life in prison. I think you know that. Just think for a moment about everything that I've told you so far. How we know all about your operation, your plans, even your personalities. How we were able to capture you the moment we saw fit to do so. Do you really think it's a good idea to run away from that? Even if you somehow managed to evade us for a short time, there's nowhere in this world you would be safe from us. You would spend the rest of your brief life constantly looking over your shoulder." He paused. "We have a psychological profile on you as well, Rouge. The life of a fugitive isn't the life for you. You desire safety and security. That's why we know you want to be done with your days spent running from the law. Those days are almost over. One way or the other."_

Sly turns the Emerald over in his hand. "So…this is the jewel more beautiful than me? I'll admit, it's got…a certain glow to it. Literally."

"Sylvester…we need to talk."

Sly looks up to meet her eyes sternly. "Now those words are never a good sign for a conversation. And you only call me that when you want something from me. So what is it?"

"I…" She hesitates for quite some time. But she finally makes up her mind. "…I…don't think it's a good idea to go through with the heist tomorrow."

"What!? You're having second thoughts _now_!? We've been planning this for months! There is _no way_ we're backing out now!"

"But what if–"

"I said _no_!" His hands are balled up into fists. He speaks through clenched teeth, "I'm going to get that ring tomorrow. No matter what."

Rouge lowers her head slowly. "Alright. Then we'll do it…just like we planned."

Sly reaches a finger under her chin, gently lifting her head so that he can look her in the eyes again. A soft smile has already returned to his face. "Now that wasn't so bad. I'm glad we were able to work it out." He reaches an arm around her back, and starts to pull her in close, closing his eyes and moving his lips closer to hers.

At the last moment, Rouge pushes him away. "We should get some sleep for tomorrow."

Sly pouts with disappointment. But he admits, "You're probably right." He turns away. But then he stops. "I think I know what all this is about."

Rouge gasps. "You do…?"

"You want out, don't you?"

"Uh-…I-…" Rouge continues to stutter a bit, but can't formulate a response.

"You're tired of the crime. You're tired of running and hiding. I get it, I understand you. So…if that's what you really want…" He pauses. "…we'll make this our last hurrah. One last heist to top off all the others. Then we'll move far away from here, where no one will ever find us. Maybe even do some treasure hunting the old-fashioned way, like you used to talk about. How does that sound?"

"…Too good to be true."

He gives her another smile. "I'll make it come true for you. I promise."

—–—

Sly presses against the wide wall in the shadows of the museum fossil exhibit. Several large dinosaur skeletons are on display in the area behind him. He questions into his radio, "How's it coming?"

Rouge stands in a small room with much better lighting. "I'm working on it." She crosses her arms as she looks up to the security guard. On her right is an array of monitors showing security feed from cameras placed throughout the museum. "Official GUN business. I'm going to have to ask you to disable all alarms and security systems."

The guard scrutinizes her closely. "You don't look like an agent."

Rouge flashes a shiny new badge bearing the 'G' emblem of GUN. "Don't I?" She takes the badge back, and points at a few of the security monitors, where several GUN soldiers and robots can be made out, all hiding in the shadows. "As you can see, we have agents stationed throughout the facility. We're catching a criminal. I'm authorized to use any means necessary. In fact, the plan doesn't require us to have this conversation at all. Please, cooperate."

"Well…I don't want any trouble with GUN." He bends down to start entering commands into the security system. After a moment, the screens all cut to static. "There. It's done."

Rouge gives him a nod in thanks. Then she lies into her radio, "Guard is out. Security is cut. You're good to go."

In his own position, Sly nods. "Got it." He moves away from the wall, and looks to the metal shutters that block his way into the next room. He crouches down and digs his fingers underneath, lifting it up without much trouble, just high enough to allow him to crawl underneath. He shuts it behind him.

The new room he arrives in has almost no light, but all attention is immediately drawn to one object. High on a pedestal in the center of the room is a single ring, decorated with an impressively large heart-shaped pink diamond, as well as various smaller colorful gems patterned all the way around its outside. As he slowly approaches the pedestal, Sly speaks, apparently to himself, "There it is…the ring worn by Queen Alena II almost 200 years ago. The most valuable of its kind. The perfect ring…for the perfect girl." Carefully, he reaches out for the ring, and clasps his fingers around it.

"Halt! You're completely surrounded!" In an instant, lights flood into the room, all directed at Sly. He is indeed completely surrounded, by soldiers, robots and drones, all with weapons pointed at him. The only possible exits are through the shuttered doors, behind walls of armed soldiers.

Immediately, he goes for his communicator. "Rouge, I'm caught! You have to make a run for it!" He gets no response. "Rouge!? Rouge!"

After a moment, her voice answers quietly, "I'm sorry…"

The soldiers have already made it to Sly, cuffing him and pinning him down to the ground. Still, he shouts, "Sorry!? Whaddaya mean, sorry!?"

She doesn't have to answer through the radio, as she enters the room, along with several more soldiers.

"You…you're in league with them, aren't you!?"

Somberly, never meeting his eyes, Rouge holds up her badge for him to see.

"What did they offer you? Power? Money? How much am I worth to them? How much am I worth to _you_?"

"I did it for you, Sly. They were going to put you away for life, maybe worse. Now you have a chance at a normal life again."

Sly glares at her with malice. "If you'd just said money, I might've believed you."

Sly is forced back up to his feet by one of the soldiers. "Let's move it." Another soldier joins him, and they restrain Sly on either side as they walk him towards the exit.

As he is walked past Rouge, he spits, "You know their prisons can't hold me. I'll break out. And when I do, there's nowhere you can go that I won't be able to find you. You'll pay for this, _Bat_."

As Sly is pushed out, he makes a show of dropping something for Rouge to see. She bends down to pick it up once he's gone. It's the ring. Rouge takes it upon herself to return it to its proper place.

One of the only soldiers left in the room calls out to her, "So, you're the new girl?"

Rouge turns to look at him. He looks a little young for a soldier, and yet he has quite a few badges and honors patched onto his uniform. His name patch reads 'J. Naka'. Rouge responds, "Yeah, that's me. Where's the Commander?"

"Occupied with important business. He sent me with your orders. And his congratulations, on the right choice he knew you'd make."

"Occupied? With what? He made this whole thing sound like priority one."

The soldier, Naka, looks around as if to make sure that no one is listening. Then he leans in close, and whispers, "You didn't hear this from me, but…apparently, there was some sort of data breach. A top secret project got leaked out. The Commander _totally_ flipped out when he heard about it."

Rouge mutters to herself, "Interesting… Maybe I'll have to look into this 'project'…"

Naka takes out a folder. "Anyways, if you're ready to start now, here are reports of three available Chaos Emeralds. There's a fourth in there, but it's already in safe hands. For the other three, your job is to investigate, retrieve if possible, and store in the Security Hall on Prison Island."

"That shouldn't take long. After that?"

"Everything we know about the rumored 'Master Emerald' is also in there. See what you can learn about it."

"If it exists, I'll find it. Guaranteed." Rouge takes the folder, and starts looking through. But then she looks up. Through a window in the next room, an armored truck can be seen. The eyes of Sly stare out through the bars, directly at her. She watches silently as the truck drives off and out of sight.

—–—

 **Present day**

"And you never figured out…why I was so obsessed with that ring?"

Rouge shakes her head.

"It was for you. I was going to propose. I wanted us to spend the rest of our lives together."

"Marriage!? Are you kidding!? I was seventeen!"

"So what!? I was in love with you! And I thought you felt the same…"

"Sly…"

"Yeah, yeah, you did it for me. Or so you keep saying."

"No. You're right. They offered me everything I ever wanted, and I justified it by telling myself that it was good for you too. I could've told you. I betrayed you instead."

"So you admit…that you did it for yourself?"

Rouge sighs. "Maybe I did. But…" She starts to walk around, behind the chair that Sly is still tied to. "…this time…I won't." She starts to untie the ropes.

"What?"

The ropes all fall to the floor as she undoes the last knot. "You heard me. Get out of here. And this time, listen when you're told to never come back."

He stands up slowly. "You just want me to leave? Pretend like none of this ever happened?"

"It…it doesn't have to be that way. GUN may not have wanted you, but we do. You could be a big help to the Rebellion, if you want to stay."

"You and me, together as fugitives? The same life you gave up back then?"

"Fugitive? I-I'm not–"

"The Eggman Empire rules this world now, Rouge. GUN, the Empire, what's the difference? Your deal bought you a few years, but it all turned out the same in the end. You still have to live in hiding."

Rouge thinks on that for quite some time. But she never answers.

"What about…you and me?"

This, Rouge answers immediately. "Forget about it. It's not happening. Ever."

"In that case, I think I'll have to pass."

"Then you should go."

Silently, Sly starts to walk out. But he stops and glances back. "You _suuuure_ …?"

"Get out."

Sly lets out a sigh. He waves a hand behind him as he leaves into the grey dawn outside. "See ya around."

Once he's safely out of earshot, Rouge finally responds, "I _really_ hope not."

—–—

Rouge sits down with her breakfast across from Sonic and Knuckles.

Sonic immediately questions, "So, how'd it go?"

Rouge looks up. "Huh? Oh, he, uh…he never showed. It was quiet all night."

Knuckles sneers, "Told you."

Sonic gives her an odd look. "Rouge…when we're done here, can I have a word with you?"

"Uhh…sure. Why not?"

—–—

Emperor Eggman sits in a familiar darkened room, across from a figure who still leans back in the shadows. Eggman questions, "You requested a meeting?"

The figure responds in his usual growling voice, "That's correct. I have some new information on the Rebellion you may find interesting."

"Go on."

"To begin with, I now have a complete head count of all current members, full details on their available supplies, and of course, the location of their base."

Eggman slams his hands down on the table. "What!? You know their location!? I'll prepare an attack force immediately, we'll destroy them all!"

The figure holds a brown-gloved hand up into the light. He appears to only have four fingers. "Please, not so hasty. If you simply try to squash the Rebellion all at once, they will scatter and flee like the insects they are. That won't do any of us any good, now will it?"

"It sounds as if you have a different plan in mind."

"Indeed I do. I think I'll allow my companion to explain." A second figure steps out of the darkness and into the light. Immediately, his blue attire is recognizable. "Allow me to introduce you to _Sly_. I helped him escape from prison some time ago, so he owes me a few favors. Sly?"

The Raccoon bows his head to Eggman. "Honored to meet you, Emperor."

"Enough of that. Tell me the plan."

"Very well. You see, if you want this Rebellion destroyed, then they must be taken apart from the inside."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"It's simple. We have an ally inside of the Rebellion. And she doesn't even know it yet."

—–—

Sonic sits across from Rouge in his own tent. "Rouge…I'm going to ask you a simple question. Can I trust you?"

"Well of course you–"

Sonic holds up a hand to stop her. "I want you to think about this. Think hard. And only answer me if you absolutely mean it."

Rouge does have to think for quite some time. But finally, she answers, "I mean it. You can trust me. With anything."

Sonic nods slowly. "Good. Because there's something very important I want you to do for me."

"What can I do?"

"We'll get to that. But you can start…by telling me what _really_ happened last night."

Rouge gasps at first. But then she nods with a slight sigh. "His name was Sylvester. But I knew him as Sly…"

 **To be continued…**


	41. S1 E4: Two Things are Infinite

**Emerald Canyon - The Rebellion Base**

Hero the Wolf lies out on a mat spread right over the grass-carpeted ground, stretching back and staring up at the stars. His black glasses have been removed, placed off to the side next to his Wispon. A chilling wind blows through the base of the canyon, ruffling his crimson fur. He doesn't have a tent for shelter. But he doesn't seem to mind. Especially with the little red Wisp curled up asleep at his side, who seems to exude warmth with every breath. With a smile, Hero wraps his arm around Bruno, drawing him closer to his chest. He finally closes his eyes, and relaxes.

High up above, on the lip of the canyon, three figures watch carefully. They all have black and white fur, striking yellow eyes, and large ears. The one on the right, the only female of the trio, wears a dark green vest, and has her white hair tied back in a ponytail. She voices quietly, "Are you sure about this, Seth?"

The one in the center, apparently the leader, wears a green headband beneath his mohawk-styled hair, and has a wide scar running across the bridge of his snout. He answers, "This is a rebel cell, Tana. They're bound to be stocked with weapons and supplies. In these times, we can get a lot of value out of that."

The one on the left wears a red beret, and has white sports tape wrapped all the way up both of his arms. He proposes, "Or, they're all starving and desperate, and we won't find anything of value at all."

The leader, Seth, shakes his head. "Don't be such a pessimist, Colm. Look at that guy down there. Does he look starving and desperate to you?"

"They don't have enough tents to fit him. What does that tell you?"

Tana adds, "Even if the spoils are there, we're talking about a rebel cell here. They're trained fighters. Most of them may be out, but they still match us in numbers."

Seth holds up a fist resolutely. "We're the Jackal Squad. We can handle it."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 4**

 **Two Things are Infinite**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, March 22nd, 0 A.E. Shadow the Hedgehog reporting.**_

 _It's been weeks since I've done anything worthwhile. I'm getting tired of it._

—–—

Shadow sits cross-legged on a mat on the ground, sheltered in his small personal tent. Aside from that mat, there is only a single personal item—a small gold medal framed in a glass case, sitting in the corner.

A knock comes on the wooden post that holds up the front of the tent. Shadow ignores it. After a few moments, the knock comes again. The voice of Sonic calls from the other side, "Shadow, it's me. Can I come in?"

Shadow seems to consider ignoring him for a moment. But then he responds, "What do you want?"

Sonic pushes the entrance flap aside, flooding in daylight as he ducks into the tent. He stops to looks around at the lack of content inside. Apparently, it's the first time he's been in. "Shadow…I think we need to talk."

"I disagree." He doesn't elaborate any further.

"Shadow, we live two tents across from each other, but I haven't seen you in over a week. You haven't shown up to any meals. As far as I know, you haven't even left this tent."

"Your point?"

Sonic sighs. "Shadow…last year, I thought I really saw you changing. Opening up. But now it's like you're more distant than you ever were before. Those two months we spent together with Chaos…you seemed happy. Is this about him?"

Shadow doesn't answer for a moment. "I was pretending to be someone I wasn't. I gave up on it. That's all."

"You said that you wanted to change. That you wanted a chance at happiness. Was that a lie?"

"I had that chance. And it was taken away. Just like it always is."

"Shadow…"

Shadow suddenly stands, and walks past Sonic without a word.

"And where are _you_ going?"

Shadow stops just long enough to answer, "For a walk. You wanted me to get out, didn't you?" Then he continues his way out. Sonic doesn't stop him.

Shadow marches along past the row of tents that mark the Rebellion camp, following along with the stream that runs through the center of the canyon. The camp seems to be pretty quiet, apparently mostly empty. He continues to walk in silence for quite some time. Eventually, he reaches a large, thick tree right in the canyon's center, with an Emerald-shaped carving in its bark. The memorial for Chaos the Hedgehog. He stops to stare at it for a while. His eyes shut as he clenches a fist at his side. Then he walks on past.

The area he proceeds into has quite a few more trees, almost like a small forest contained within the widening walls of the canyon. After a few moments, another pair of footsteps fall in line beside his. Shadow finally looks up and around his shoulder. Hero gives him a smile and a wave as he continues to walk alongside him.

"What do _you_ want?"

Hero gives a shrug, and waves a hand past Shadow out to the forest.

"I don't want your company. We may have worked together before, but that doesn't make us friends."

Beside Hero, Bruno lets out an angry squeak as he shakes a balled up tentacle at Shadow. Hero gasps at whatever it is he hears in the alien language, and starts waving his hands to get him to calm down.  
Shadow rolls his eyes. "Whatever. Do what you want." They continue their walk together for a while longer. Suddenly, Shadow stops in place again as one of his ears twitches. "Did you hear that?"

Hero glances around for a moment, but eventually gives another shrug.

A blur of motion passes behind Shadow. He turns sharply look at it, but he's too slow to see anything. He tenses up as he advises quietly, "Be on guard. We're being followed."

Hero pulls his Wispon close, while Bruno moves around to watch his back. But everything is silent.

Seth the Jackal stands with his back pressed against the shadowed side of a tree, trying as hard as he can to glance around it without being seen. He mouths silently in what seems to be a random direction, _"Who is that guy? Why didn't we account for him?"_

Tana hides behind another tree nearby, and seems to read his lips. She mouths back, _"I can't get a good look at him. Is it possible we missed him before?"_

 _"There's no way. We were surveying all day and all night. Where could he have been hiding all that time?"_

From another direction, Colm mouths, _"What do we do about him?"_

Seth draws a weapon, a long dagger with a green hilt and a wavy blade. _"Let's see if we can–"_

Shadow taps Seth on the shoulder. "Looking for someone?"

Seth's eyes go wide with terror at the first sight of the hedgehog. He suddenly shouts at the top of his lungs, "Run! Run for your lives! It's Shadow! Shadow is _here_!"

Tana and Colm take one fearful glance at each other, before turning in opposite directions and fleeing without hesitation. They swiftly and skillfully scale either wall of the canyon, and quickly disappear from sight.

Seth turns to flee as well, but Shadow grabs him by the arm and twists it, sending him crashing to the ground, and pinning him there with his arm behind his back. Hero approaches him from the other side as he struggles to free himself. But after a moment, he gives up the struggle. A smirk appears on his face. "I barely escaped with my life last time. I guess it's time to pay back my debt to Lady Luck. Do your worst, Hedgehog."

Shadow hardly seems to listen to Seth's babbling. "Who are you?"

At first, Seth seems surprised. But then he lets out a chuckle. "Heh. Guess I shouldn't expect you to remember me. Just another face on your hit list, right? In fact, I'll bet I wasn't even there. That would've been the Captain's honor."

Shadow rolls his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"My name is Seth the Jackal. You destroyed my squad, and killed our leader. My closest friend…"

For just a moment, Shadow takes on a look of surprise, as Hero gasps aloud. "As in…the Jackal Squad?"

"Oh, so you _do_ remember? How you tore through every one of us like it was nothing?"

Shadow has already regained his composure. "You must be confused. I never killed the leader of Squad Jackal. Infinite is still out there somewhere, doing who-knows-what."

"How _dare_ you!? That _thing_ in the mask is _not_ Captain Finn!"

Shadow closes his eyes as he lets out a sigh. Then he lets go of Seth's arm, and takes a step back. "I think we need to talk." Stepping in for Shadow, Hero bends down and offers Seth a hand.

Seth looks up to the two of them with confusion. "You mean…you aren't going to finish the job?"

Shadow shakes his head. "My only job was to destroy Eggman's Facility. You were in my way. That doesn't mean I wanted to kill you, or anyone else."

Seth hesitates for a moment. But then he takes Hero's hand, and is helped back up to his feet.

—–—

The three have moved even deeper into the forested area, and no longer seem to be in a canyon at all. Seth sits on a fallen log, while Shadow leans back against the nearest tree. Hero simply stands, watching Seth closely.

Seth lets out a sigh. "It was three months before the war started, when I first laid eyes on the Ruby. It was supposed to be a simple mission. Get in, grab some tech, get out. We didn't even know that Dr. Eggman was there personally at that pyramid base, let alone what he had waiting for us. We were up against half an army. But they weren't like normal robots, they would fade away as they went down, almost like they weren't really there. I knew right away that something was off. But Captain Finn ordered us to keep fighting them off while he dealt with the Doctor.

"I didn't get a very good look at what happened next, but…one moment he was getting ready to deliver the killing blow, and the Doctor looked like he was trying to protect himself with this Ruby, and the next, they were both just staring off into space. And then he was on the ground, at the Doctor's mercy. In the confusion, Tana, Colm and I were caught as well. The Doctor could've gotten rid of all of us. Instead, he asked Finn to lead his forces. I didn't understand everything that was happening, but I saw the way he was looking at that Ruby. I begged Finn not to be tempted. But I don't think he heard a word of it. He let out this…terrifying laugh. And then he agreed.

"The Doctor looked to us, next. He said he wanted to hire us as well, as a defense squad. I knew it was a threat, he wouldn't have let me say no. We still might've been able to fight our way out, but all I cared about at that moment was figuring out what was going on, stopping Finn from doing something stupid. He wasn't even paying attention. The Doctor had given him the Ruby, and he couldn't take his eyes off of it. If the Doctor killed us, I don't think he would've cared. He'd already been changed. So I agreed. And the Jackal Squad became Defense Squad Jackal.

"We were mobile, moving from base to base all the time. After a couple of weeks, we ended up at Eggman's Facility in the Mystic Jungle. And that's when you showed up."

Shadow seems slightly irritated by the long monologue. "What's your point?"

"A person doesn't just change like that, especially not someone strong like Captain Finn. It's because…that was when the spirits first got into his head."

Shadow raises a skeptical eyebrow. "Spirits?"

"That thing he couldn't be separated from…it was called the Phantom Ruby."

"We knew that already."

"Well, you ever wonder what the 'Phantom' stands for?"

Shadow glances over at Hero. He shrugs in response. Shadow looks back to Seth. "Go on."

"The Phantom Ruby has power over the dead. And that thing you call Infinite is a demon that stole Captain Finn's body."

Shadow's eyes go wide with some mixture of disbelief and amusement. Hero stifles a laugh, while Bruno snickers much more openly.

"What's so funny?"

Shadow shakes his head. "That's what this is all based on? An incomplete observation and a meaningless name the Doctor probably pulled out of a hat?"

"But it's true! I know it is!"

"We've dealt with the Phantom Ruby more than once. Its power is to create illusions and manipulate the mind. No spirits. No demons."

"I've known Captain Finn for a long time. He taught me everything I know. There's no way that thing is still him. I heard him rant about the 'old' him that he threw away to become this thing. The old Finn that had to be killed so this thing could take over."

"The first time I encountered Infinite as we know him now, he remembered everything about that night at Eggman's Facility. He was bitter about it."

"Of course he was bitter about it, you _killed_ him! That doesn't prove anything!"

"And you have better proof?"

Seth closes his eyes. "…I do. Lyon."

"Who's Lyon?"

"An old member of the Jackal Squad. He died years ago. I didn't know him very well, but he and Finn were pretty close."

"Well what about him?"

"I told you that I wanted to get to the bottom of what was happening to Finn. So I was spying on him while he was going through Eggman's experiments. And one night, he wasn't alone. Lyon was standing right there with him. I heard him speak. A dead man come to life. Except that he wasn't alive. He faded away like a phantom."

Shadow sighs. "Just a Replica. The Phantom Ruby can create illusions that seem like people, he was only testing out that power using someone familiar."

"But–… That–…" He buries his face in a hand, unable to come up with another objection. "…The day before you attacked, Finn entrusted me with his prized possession, the Ruby Blade. The day after, when I tried to find him, he almost killed me. How could that be the same person?"

"He took the sword back."

Seth seems surprised that Shadow knows this. But he nods after a moment. "After the first war, we all thought he was gone for good. But then one day, 'Infinite' showed up again on the news. We could all see that it wasn't him, that someone else put on the mask. But then the sword just disappeared. We thought…maybe the demon had moved on, left Finn behind. But it was clear he was avoiding us. We never managed to talk to him. And he kept going after that Ruby."

Seth looks up with surprise as Hero places a hand on his shoulder. He wears a look of sorrow and understanding.

"You…you talked to him, didn't you?"

Hero closes his eyes and nods.

"And he…he wasn't…?" He doesn't seem quite sure how to phrase the question.

Hero still nods again.

Seth covers his face with both hands. "How could it be true? How could I have believed in a lie all of this time?"

Hero suddenly looks up from Seth to Shadow, apparently struck by an idea.

Shadow glances back skeptically. "You aren't actually thinking we should…?"

Hero nods almost excitedly.

"That's insane…"

Seth finally looks up again. "What, what's insane?"

Shadow closes his eyes for a moment as he considers whether or not to say it. "There is…one way, we can find out if you're right. We find him, and ask him ourselves."

Seth's eyes light up. "Is that really possible?"

"He's been off the map ever since the end of the last war. But there is a chance."

"And if I'm wrong…if you're right, and Finn really is still in there…maybe I can get through to him. Maybe I can can get him back."

"Wishful thinking. But maybe."

"And…if I can't? If he's really gone?"

Shadow thinks on that. "He's a dangerous person. We don't know what he's up to, but it could be very bad. If you can't get through to him…then we may need your help to take him down. If you're okay with that."

"If I'm right, then I have no problem killing that thing myself."

—–—

Shadow moves right in through the entrance flap of Tails' tent.

Tails jumps up with shout. "Ahh!" He takes a moment to catch his breath when he sees that it's only Shadow. He appears to have been engrossed in his work at a workbench set up against the tent wall, which takes up most of the space in the room. It's covered with scattered tools, parts, and gizmos. "Shadow…? Don't you know how to knock?"

"I'm in a hurry. Can you find a way to track the energy of a Phantom Ruby prototype?"

Tails blinks a few times as he processes the meaning of the question. "Uhh… Shadow…there's only one Ruby protype left. You know who has it."

"Yes, that's who I'm looking for. Can you find him?"

"Well…I've never really tried. It was never really a good idea to _find_ Infinite. He finds you, and you hope to get away."

Shadow crosses his arms. "Can you do it, or not?"

"Umm… Based on what I know about the Phantom Ruby's energy…some adjustments to the old Emerald Radar might do the trick, it wouldn't take long. But I–"

"Good. Do it." Shadow turns to leave.

"Shadow?" Shadow stops halfway out the exit. "You've…never really asked me for anything before."

"Your point?"

"I'll…try not to let you down." He gives a reassuring smile.

Shadow leaves without responding.

Hero waits for him outside, casting a questioning look.

Shadow walks past him, and he follows behind. "It went fine. That's not the part you should be worried about."

They stop in front of the next tent down, the one at the very head of the line. Shadow is about to push his way in as he did before, but he falters for a moment. He raps briefly on the center supporting post instead.

Sonic's voice immediately answers, "Come in." They both do.

Sonic looks up with surprise at seeing Shadow, apparently expecting someone else. "Oh, Shadow. Had a nice walk?" Shadow doesn't answer. "I heard Tails yell, is everything alright?"

"Fine. We're going on a mission."

Sonic raises an eyebrow. "With Tails?"

"No." Hero steps up beside him to answer the rest of the question.

"Well…I don't really have anything for you right now, everyone else is already out taking care of–"

"We already know what we're doing."

"Is that so? Care to tell me what that is?"

"Not really."

Sonic stares at Shadow for a moment. He lets out a quiet groan, muttering, "Why did I sign up for this?" He rests his head in one hand as he thinks for another few moments. "…Obviously you care at least a little bit about my opinion, otherwise you wouldn't have come here for my permission in the first place. So why don't you tell me what this is all about so I can actually give you one?"

"It doesn't matter. We're going whether you approve or not."

Sonic looks up to Hero for a moment. Hero doesn't seem sure whether to agree or not, so after a moment, he shrugs.

So Sonic looks back to Shadow. "If that's true, then why are you here?"

Shadow looks down to the ground for quite some time without answering.

"You can tell me, Shadow."

"…We're going after Infinite."

Sonic shows open shock for several moments. He finally manages to stutter out, "W…why?"

"…To help someone."

"Who?"

"I won't say."

"Because I won't approve?"

"Because it's a long story, and I'm tired of waiting."

Sonic doesn't quite seem to buy that explanation. He lets out a sigh as he thinks on it some more. "There are only the four of us here. If you two leave, then it'll just be Tails and me. Could be bad news if we're attacked."

"I'm aware of that."

"…So you're leaving to go do something stupid, leaving us undefended, to help someone who might be dangerous based on what I'm gathering? If I didn't know better, I'd say you were _trying_ to get us all killed."

"But you know better."

"That's right, I do. I know you, and I know you wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't important. What I can't figure out is _why_. Who is this guy, and what makes helping him worth risking your life? Since when does helping _anyone_ matter that much to you? Or…is this really about Infinite?" Shadow doesn't answer. Sonic lets out another sigh. "But clearly, someone needs help. And you're actually volunteering to do it. How could I say no to that?"

"So we can go?"

"Yeah, just…" He looks up to Hero. "…watch his back, okay?"

Hero gives a thumbs-up with a smile.

A knock comes at the center post. Sonic immediately invites, "Come on in, join the party."

Tails ducks in through the entrance, holding his Handheld with him. "Shadow, I got a signal. I have a location for you." The tent is a bit cramped with all four of them inside.

Sonic questions, "So you knew about this?"

Tails gaps, "Oh, I didn't realize you hadn't already–"

"Don't worry, it's fine. So, where are they going?"

Tails looks down to his device. "The signal came from one of Eggman's old pyramid bases."

"In Green Hill?"

"No, an older one, actually. It was Eggman's launch base when he needed to get to the ARK, just east of Central City. We were there together, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember." He looks over to Shadow. "Better watch out for ghosts in there."

Hero glances over at Shadow in surprise, mistakenly thinking that Sonic might know something. But Shadow isn't concerned.

Sonic continues, "That's pretty far away. You could be gone a while."

"Or I could take the Emerald and get there in a second."

"Oh, is _that_ why you came to me?" He thinks for a moment. "Normally I'd say no, but…knowing what you're up against, I think you need every chance you can get." He stands, and moves to a cabinet in the back of the tent. He crouches down to open the bottom drawer, and pulls out a box-shaped metal case. He unhooks the latches on the side and opens it, revealing the glowing yellow Chaos Emerald inside, surrounded by six other empty Emerald-shaped slots. He stares at the pattern for a moment, before removing the Emerald and stowing the case away again. He walks back over to Shadow, and hands the Emerald to him across the table. He jokes, "I know what a klutz you are, so try not to lose it."

Shadow takes the Emerald wordlessly, and turns to leave. Hero follows behind him, waving goodbye awkwardly. But Shadow stops at the exit, and looks back at Tails. "…Thanks." They exit the rest of the way.

Tails looks up at Sonic. "What's going on with him?"

Sonic shakes his head as he sits back down. "I wish I knew. But…I think it's a good thing."

—–—

Seth waits for them high on the lip of the canyon, from the same vantage point he watched the night before. Looking straight down from the small protrusion over the chasm seems to be the only position from which one can get a look at the otherwise-concealed camp below. Far behind him, the more open, forested area of the canyon base can be seen. But a short distance in front of him, Shadow and Hero cross over the simple wooden bridge that connects the two sides of the canyon. Seth calls out to them, "Hey! I was beginning to think you might've changed your minds. Maybe Colm's rubbing off on me. So, you get everything squared up?"

As Shadow stops in front of him, he presents the Emerald for him to see. "Yeah."

Seth's eyes light up. "Whoa… So that's a Chaos Emerald? And you were keeping that here this whole time? Man, if we'd gone through with that heist…" He stops as he realizes that Shadow is glaring at him. "Sorry."

"I can take us to Infinite now."

"Oh, you're gonna do your teleport thing?"

"It's called Chaos Control."

"Chaos Control. Right. So do I have to hold on, or…?"

Shadow's voice takes on an edge of irritation. "Just stand close."

Seth is clearly intimidated. "Uhh…right." He steps a little closer, but not too close. But Hero isn't afraid to stand right up next to him.

Shadow stops for a moment as a thought occurs to him. "What about the rest of your squad? What happens if they come back and none of us are here?"

"No need to worry. They'll be back twenty-four hours after we scattered, and not a minute sooner. It's a policy we decided on after the last time you gave us trouble."

Shadow doesn't answer him, and stares back down at the Emerald in his hand. "Chaos…" He holds it high in the air above him. "…Control!" The Emerald emits a bright flash of pulsating light which quickly envelops all of them, warping them away.

—–—

 **Pyramid Cave**

Shadow, Seth, and Hero walk through the long, winding, torchlit passageway deep inside the pyramid.

Seth seems a bit on edge. "So…you think that Finn is somewhere in this pyramid?"

Bruno also looks very nervous, but Hero pats him on the head gently, which seems to comfort him.

Shadow nods. "The energy signature of his Phantom Ruby prototype was detected here not long ago. He should still be here."

Seth constantly glances back over his shoulder. "Well…it sure feels like the kind of place a demon would hang out, don't you think? It's gotta be haunted! I feel like I'm being watched!"

"That's because _I'm_ still keeping my eye on you." Seth seems about to object, but Shadow's glare seems to scare him just as much as the possibility of ghosts. Until something pops out of the ground. Bruno flees into Hero's Wispon with a terrified squeak.

The small ghost has beady orange eyes and sharp, gnashing teeth worn in a terrifyingly large grin as it lets out a high-pitched laugh, raising its thin arms as if to grab at Seth.

"AAGHHH!" In a terrified frenzy, Seth draws his dagger and starts stabbing at the ghost over and over again. The ghost recoils away from the attack, fading away into nothing. But Seth continues to swing the blade about wildly, eyes clenched shut.

"Seth, it's gone!"

Shadow's shout forces Seth to open his eyes, returning to reality. "Uhh…thanks." He re-sheathes the dagger with what little dignity he has left. "Wait a minute…" He looks from the spot the ghost appeared from, over to Shadow. "That was a ghost! A real, live, _ghost_!"

"It's not 'live' if it's a ghost."

"You know what I mean! You thought I was crazy for thinking that the Phantom Ruby might have power over the dead, but here we are, being attacked by actual ghosts!"

Shadow resumes their walk, forcing the others to follow him. "The ancient civilization that constructed this pyramid clearly didn't want anyone getting inside. Does it really surprise you that they would come up with a trick like this? Smoke and mirrors, designed to scare off any intruders."

"But…it was–"

"How would you know? You barely looked at it."

Seth can't object to that. So they keep walking in silence. In a short time, they make it to a tall metal door that blocks the way to the next room, emblazoned with a stylized hieroglyph of Eggman. "Well… I don't think that belongs here."

"This must be the center of the base." Shadow walks up to the large door, and puts a hand up against it. "It's already unlocked." He digs his fingers into the seam running down the middle of the double doors, and pushes them apart with a slight struggle, opening the way into the pyramid's core beyond.

The large, open room begins through the door with an elevated platform high above a pit of sand below, stretching out in two directions, and coming around into a circle that connects at a stone door on the opposite side. And standing in front of that door, back turned to them, is the unmistakable form of Infinite. Compared to his jet black fur, Seth's seems more like a soft grey.

Without turning, Infinite holds his Ruby Blade sideways up against the door in front of him, staring into the reflection that it shows of him, and those in the room behind him. He speaks, loud enough for them all to hear, "According to legend, this blade was forged in this very pyramid. It was wielded by those who would tend to the dead. Dying kings would see visions of the afterlife in its reflection. Or at least, that's how the story goes. It's ironic, I suppose, how the Doctor tore out the insides of these sacred grounds for his own purposes. Just as he did to me."

Unable to contain himself any longer, Seth calls out, "Finn!"

Infinite's hand tightens around his blade. But he still doesn't turn. "My three least favorite people in the world. Come to kill me? Now that doesn't sound like the _heroic_ thing to do."

Hero tenses up at the insult directed at him. Bruno finally peeks out of the Wispon, trying to get a look at Infinite. But he quickly retreats back in.

Seth finally responds, "So…you _do_ remember me?"

Infinite lets out a soft chuckle. "Of course." He finally turns his head, revealing his cracked mask to Seth for the first time. "How could I forget the biggest _disappointment_ it's ever been my misfortune to know?"

Seth is taken aback. "I…I don't understand. You took me under your wing, trained me to be your second in command! You trusted me with your blade! What did I do wrong, Finn!?"

"Don't call me by the name of that _weakling_! I am Infinite!" Infinite's crimson Ruby aura blazes to life. But after a moment, he calms, and the aura dims. He even lets out another chuckle. "I always hated that name. Long before I ever encountered the Ruby. It made me feel like I was nothing. Like I could _do_ nothing. But you're right. I did trust you, back then. And that's what made it _so_ disappointing. The night that Shadow attacked, I thought you'd been killed. And I would have been fine with that. But to see you come crawling back the next day, knowing you'd turned tail and ran away, and holding my blade as if to emphasize my misplaced trust…it was disgusting. I would've killed you right then, if you hadn't fled once again."

Tears begin to fill Seth's eyes. "Well what did you expect me to do!? We were faced with a superior foe, even _you_ couldn't beat him!"

Infinite shouts back, "I expected you to stand your ground and fight as I did!"

"So I have to die in battle to win your approval!?"  
"If that's what it takes."

Seth drops to his hands and knees. "What can I do _now,_ Finn? How can I make it up to you? How can I get you back?"

"It's far too late for that. The man you knew as Finn the Jackal is dead. And your pathetic groveling certainly won't help matters."

Seth represses a sob. "Take it off."

"What?"

Seth looks up sharply, his tears flowing. "I said take it off! Take off that accursed mask! If you're going to tell me that my friend is dead, at least look me in the eyes when you do it!"

By the way he pauses, Infinite seems surprised. "…Very well." Slowly, he floats forward to the very center of the circular pit. As he does, he reaches a hand up around the center of his mask, and begins to lift it off. The mask moves away. And what's revealed underneath is shocking. His entire face is wrapped in filthy white bandages, revealing small patches of mummified flesh underneath. He shows his rotting teeth with a malicious grin. Even Shadow gasps at the sight. "Is this what you were hoping to see, Seth!? Well let me tell you again! _Finn is dead_!" He lets out a full on laugh.

Seth is far too terrified to make any response.

Infinite looks over to Hero, who has remained silent all of this time. "Oh, but you… You were hoping to see something else, weren't you? Perhaps…" He waves his hand over his own face, casting out a glitching aura that causes it to transform. "…this?" When the aura fades, the handsome face of a younger Finn is left, with slicked back hair and perfect white teeth, and no scar to mar his soft blue eye. "It really makes no difference." He pushes his mask back up onto his face again. His covered blue eye still stares out at them through the crack in the mask. " _This_ is the only face that matters now. The face of Infinite. Besides…you were _all_ right about me, in a way. The process of bonding to the Ruby for the first time…sealed inside the Doctor's chamber, weakened and injured from the battle…perhaps it _did_ kill that weak version of me. But the Ruby gave me _new_ life. I was reborn."

Seth finally speaks again. "Finn…I never thought you were weak. You were the strongest guy I ever knew."

"Then you believed a lie. As you still do now."

"I won't accept that. I won't accept anything short of the truth. And the truth…is that I can't get my friend back. And it's because of you." Suddenly, he draws his dagger and leaps at Infinite from his side of the platform. "But I _will_ avenge him!"

Infinite can't help but chuckle as he swats the assailant aside with his free hand and a pulse of Ruby energy, knocking him back down onto the circular platform. "Assaulting a superior opponent with no chance of victory? Maybe there's hope for you after all."

Shadow's voice answers from behind him, "His chance of victory is higher than you think." Infinite blocks Shadow's kick with the back side of his blade-wielding hand, but can't defend himself from the Chaos Spear that hits him a moment later, knocking him back.

Before he can even recover, he's hit from behind by a jet of fire that Hero launches from his Wispon as he sprints around the platform. Infinite puts out a hand to block the flames, but Seth is already leaping at him with drawn dagger once again, as Shadow moves in to attack from the opposite side. Still using one hand to keep the flames back, he slashes his blade in Shadow's direction, generating a crimson energy wave that hits Shadow directly, knocking him back. He turns and slashes again, just in time to lock his blade against Seth's. They meet eyes for just a moment. But even with only one hand, Infinite easily pushes Seth back, then launches another slash-wave at Hero. Hero has to dive and roll out of the way, ending his attack.

All three are quickly prepared to start attacking again. Until a hideous, gargling screech hits their ears. Infinite lets out a laugh at the sound. "Well, it appears our scuffle has disturbed the restless spirit of one of the ancient kings. But I'm sure even _you_ can handle it." He continues to laugh as he floats backwards with arms outstretched, disappearing through the now-open door he'd been standing in front of when they first entered the room.

Shadow races after him. "You aren't getting away _that_ easily!" He manages to slip underneath the door just before it shuts behind him with a loud thud.

Seth and Hero make it to the door a few moments later, but there doesn't seem to be any way to open it again. A massive figure seems to rise up out of the ground behind them, breathing heavily. They stiffen up and glance at each other, as if to ask who has the courage to turn and look at it first. But they both turn as it lets out another gargling screech. The huge pitcher-shaped ghost with swollen blue lips, razor-sharp teeth, and a rainbow-colored tongue, is immediately recognizable as King Boom Boo.

"Okay, I don't care _what_ Shadow says. That thing is _definitely_ a ghost."

The King of Ghosts screeches again as it readies a large blue fireball in one upraised arm.

"Run for it!" They both take off at a run to avoid being burned alive as the fireball explodes on the ground behind them.

—–—

Shadow faces Infinite in what was once Eggman's control room. Several of the whirring, pumping machines are still functioning, a simple metal fence separating them from the largest of it. Some old computer consoles lie inactive near the center of the room, partially surrounding a smooth orange teleporter pad on the floor.

Infinite breathes, "Finally… It's only me and you. I only put up with those weaklings so that I could have a moment alone with _you_ , Shadow the Hedgehog."

Shadow stands ready to resume the fight at any moment. "What are you planning, Infinite?"

"Ah, at least _you_ have the sense to call me by the correct name."

"I don't have time for your games." Shadow is already charging a Chaos Spear in one hand.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Shadow. You _owe_ me, remember?"

Shadow's attack dissipates with his surprise. "What?"

"Yes. As I recall, I woke your dear friend Sonic from his Virtual Reality, out of the kindness of my heart. And I told you I would want that debt repaid."

"Why should I do anything for you?"

"Well, it certainly wouldn't be very difficult for me to put him right back where he was. He's almost completely alone at the moment, is he not? Unguarded. Such a shame it would be for your Rebellion, if your leader became trapped in his own mind. Besides…I think you _want_ to help me."

"What are you talking about?"

"You broke your word to me, last time. And I think it weighs on you. Perhaps you even blame yourself for what happened next. You have something to prove. That you _can_ keep a promise."

Shadow hesitates for several moments. "…What is it that you want?"

"The same thing that I've always wanted. The Phantom Ruby. The real one, not like this weak prototype I wield now."

"You know that's impossible. Hero destroyed the Ruby, we both watched him do it."

"Correction: he destroyed _a_ Ruby. But I've been quite busy these last few months. And I have come to learn…that there are _three_ Phantom Rubies."

—–—

Hero shoots off his own fire at the ghost king, bright enough to make it recoil backwards. It dives into the ground, and passes underneath him in the form a shadow. But Seth is ready for him on the other side, and plunges his dagger into the heart of the shadow on the ground. King Boom Boo lets out a screech of pain as it rises back out of the ground and tries to flee. Hero cuts it off and fires his Wispon again, engulfing it in the bright flames. Letting out one final screech, the ghost spins away as it dissolves into nothing.

Hero and Seth let out a simultaneous sigh in relief. "Smoke and mirrors, eh? I don't think so."

They both look up as the stone door begins to open again with a rumble. Shadow stands silently on the other side.

"Shadow!" They both run up to him. "What happened, where is he!?"

"He… He got away."

Seth looks down to the ground. "Oh… Well…do you think we can find him again?"

"Are you sure that's what you want to do?"

Seth seems ready to answer, but then he hesitates. "I…I don't know."

"Let's go back. There's nothing left for us here."

"…Yeah. Okay."

—–—

The three have moved back to the forested area beyond the canyon. The sun is beginning to set, casting a bright orange glow over them. Seth looks down to the ground. "Thank you both…for helping me. I don't know what I did to deserve it, but…" He looks up with surprise to see Hero once again placing a hand on his shoulder with a smile. "Of course. You wanted to help Finn, too."

Shadow lets out a quiet sigh. But after a moment, he answers, "No one should have to see something like that happen to someone they look up to. It isn't right."

"There's a lot that isn't right about this world. Something that Infinite is right about, I guess."

"What are you going to do about him?"

"I…still don't know. In that moment, I was so certain that I wanted to take him down. That that's what Finn would've wanted me to do. But now…"

"…No matter how much he's changed, he still was once your friend. And you feel you owe it to him to let him live his own life. Even if it's not the life you want for him. Even if it's not the life you think he would've wanted back then."

"…Yeah. I guess that's it." Suddenly, Seth glances up slightly. He closes his eyes, and lets out a sigh of disappointment with small smile. He declares, seemingly to no one in particular, "It's okay, guys. You can come out. These are my friends."

After a moment, Colm and Tana each peek out from behind a different tree. They finally move out once Seth waves for them to come closer.

Seth continues with a slight edge of irritation in his voice, "You're early. We agreed to wait twenty-four hours in situations like this."

Colm answers a bit defensively, "Well, yeah, but since Shadow got you, we both assumed…"

"You assumed I was dead, so once you made sure Shadow was gone, you decided to take charge and continue with the heist anyways, against the rules we agreed on. That's insubordination, Colm."

Trying to change the subject, Colm questions, "Wait a minute, did you say that you're _friends_ …with _Shadow the Hedgehog_?"

Seeing an opportunity, Shadow answers, glaring at Colm with malice, "That's right. And people who go behind the backs of my _friends_ tend to wish they hadn't."

Colm stumbles a few steps backwards with utter terror. But then Seth and Hero both break out into laughter, realizing that Shadow actually made a joke. Even Shadow himself cracks a smirk. Once Tana starts snickering as well, Colm is forced to let out an awkward chuckle along with them. "Heh heh… Yeah…funny…" He continues to glance nervously at Shadow, but doesn't risk saying anything more.

After a sigh, Shadow directs at Seth, "Now that you're all here…there's something I should ask you. We could always use more skilled hands like yours in the fight against Eggman. And…maybe…I'd like to make up for what I did the night met. Would you…join the Rebellion? All three of you, I mean."

Seth puts on a smirk. "You've really helped me today, Shadow. I think you've already made up for it enough. But don't think that means I owe you any favors. We're mercenaries, not rebels. So unless you have the cash to hire us long-term, the answer's no."

"Then I guess the answer's no."

"That's too bad."

Unable to wait any longer, Tana finally questions, "What happened today, Seth? Where did you go?"

"…I think it's time to go. I'll tell you on the way." He turns around, but glances back at Shadow. "Until we meet again, Shadow the Hedgehog. And you too, Hero." He waves goodbye with a casual flick of the wrist, then begins the walk away, Tana at his side.

Colm runs to catch up a moment later. "Wait a minute, we're leaving!? But we haven't gotten anything yet!"

Seth answers, "I'd say we got something pretty valuable. I learned a lot today."

"Yeah, but what did we actually _get_? We didn't seriously come all the way out here for nothing, did we?"

Seth ignores him. Tana questions, "So where are we going now?"

"I think it's time we raided another Eggman base. Maybe…do some good while we work."

Colm interjects, "Right, because that went _so_ well for us last time."  
"Colm, it's amazing how you manage to see the worst in _every_ possible situation."

"Yeah, but it's still true."

Tana can't help but laugh, and the other two soon join in.

Shadow watches as they disappear into the forest with the sun at their backs. Then he turns to Hero. "I'm…sorry, for what I said to you this morning. You fought well out there today. And…I wouldn't mind fighting with you again sometime."

With a big smile, Hero holds out a closed fist to Shadow.

"Don't push it."

Hero obligingly takes his hand back, and settles for a mutual nod in respect. Then they both turn to look at the sunset, framed perfectly by the canyon walls not far in the distance. Wordlessly, they both start walking back.

—–—

Shadow sits cross-legged on a mat on the ground in his small personal tent. The Chaos Emerald is placed on the floor in front of him, struck by the moonlight that floods in through the tent's entrance, which has been tied open. Sonic can be partially seen through the opening before his knock comes at the center post.

After a moment, Shadow responds, "Come in."

Sonic ducks in through the opening, and stands there by the entrance for a short while.

"You came to take the Emerald back?"

"Actually…I was hoping I could join you."

Shadow hesitates. But then he responds, "I'd like that."

With a smile, Sonic walks over and takes a seat on the ground across from Shadow, leaving the Emerald between them. He assumes a meditative stance, and closes his eyes. "I haven't really had the time to meditate since this whole war started. There's always something more important to work on. Chaos would be furious if he knew I gave up on it."

Shadow answers, "You should continue. It can help you relax, focus. Especially with the Emerald."

"Yeah." Sonic takes a few deep breaths. "…Shadow…I don't know what happened to you today…but I'm glad it did. Hero even gave me the impression that you were happy, for a little while. I haven't seen you smile since Chaos was alive."

Shadow responds openly, "Infinite…was a reminder. Of what happens when you lose control of your life. I have to remind myself…that no matter what happens around me…only I can decide who I am because of it. And I…still want to be a better person. One who helps people, because it's the right thing to do. One who…cares about his friends. I consider you a friend, Sonic. And I think I have a better idea of what that means now."

"Well…can't say I ever expected to hear that out of _you_ , Shadow. But…I'm happy to hear it. You're my friend, too." Sonic peeks one eye open just long enough to see Shadow's soft smile. He closes his eyes again, and together, they breathe in harmony with the soft pulsating glow of the Chaos Emerald.

But Shadow's breathing flaters for a moment as he opens his eyes. He looks across at Sonic, but quickly moves his glance back down to the ground. The Chaos Emerald almost seems to dim just slightly, as if sensing the guilt he feels over his newest secret.

—–—

Infinite stands in a deep, dark chamber of the pyramid, lit only by a single flickering torch on the wall. He stares at the wall beneath the torch, where a single glyph depicts a long, curved red blade. Below it is three more glyphs, each of a perfect, familiar geometric shape. They can only be the Phantom Rubies. The center one, directly beneath the blade, is of a similar blood-red color, while the one on the left bears a more familiar violet coloration. The one on the right is a dark, ruddy orange. Infinite raises his blade up to the wall, nearly laying it against the glyph that depicts it. But nothing happens.

A familiar growling voice speaks from behind him, "Well that was anticlimactic."

Infinite turns his head with surprise. "Who are you supposed to be?"

A figure stands just at the edge of the torchlight, concealed in the shadows as always. "Me? I'm no one important. It's my employer you should be more interested in. The Emperor himself."

"You expect me to care what the Doctor is doing? I have my _own_ mission."

"Precisely why you should care. As ruler of the world, my employer has access to certain…resources. Resources that could help you with your Ruby problem. Resources that would be yours, if you worked for him."

"…What is it that you want?"

"I'm forming…a team. A sort of…Anti-Rebellion, if you will. And I think _you_ would be a perfect fit." The figure offers his four-fingered hand out into the light, revealing the bluish-purple fur on his arm. "What do you say?"

"I say…if you truly _can_ help me acquire the Ruby…then I will do as you ask. For now." The figure holds his arm out for another few moments, until it becomes clear that Infinite has no intention of shaking hands. Instead, he simply nods his head down, moving the brim of his brown hat into the light, as well as, on the side of his face, a single, large, pointed white fang.

 **To be continued…**


	42. S1E5:Chaotix and the Computer Room Caper

**Emerald Canyon - The Rebellion Base**

Cream the Rabbit kneels down on ground, tending to a patch of earthy soil that extends in a long strip off to her right. Cheese the Chao floats just above her, struggling slightly to hold up a metal watering can. Several more similar strips of soil are patterned out in front of Cream, reaching all the way to a makeshift fence constructed of uneven strips of wood, which wraps all the way around the clearing in the forested area near the end of the canyon. The area appears to be a vegetable garden.

Cream stands back up. "Okay Cheese, time to water this one."

"Chao chao!" Cheese lets the watering can tip over, and starts flying at a steady pace over the strip of soil, letting out the perfect amount of water.

"Hey, Cream?" Tails waves hello from the other side of the fence behind her.

Cream looks back with surprise. "Oh, hi Tails."

"I thought you'd like to know, my new proximity sensors just went off. They're back."

"Really!?" She looks over at Cheese, who has just put down the can. "You hear that, Cheese? Let's go say hello!"

"Chao!"

Cream excitedly runs off, hopping nimbly over the fence, Cheese following close behind. Tails smiles after them as they leave.

Cream sprints past the waterfall that tumbles down from the cliffs above, past the row of tents marking the Rebel camp, until she can finally see a figure off in the distance. She runs even faster at the sight.

Quickly, the figure comes into view. It's Vector the Crocodile. He appears to be alone. When Cream gets close enough to realize this, she skids to a halt.

Vector gives her a wave. "Evening, Cream."

Cream gives a courteous bow, despite her apparent nervousness. "Hello, Mr. Vector. Umm…is Amy here?"

Vector closes his eyes and shakes his head.

Cream gasps in horror.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 5**

 **Team Chaotix and the Case of the Computer Room Caper**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, April 17th, 0 A.E. Vector the Crocodile reporting.**_

 _Since we were both headed to the same place, Sonic sent Espio and me along with Amy's team to destroy one of Eggman's robot facilities. But I had to come back alone. I guess the place was under heavier guard than they were expecting. So once we had the data we needed for our intelligence report, Espio offered to stay behind and help with the job, while I came back with the report. I'm sure they're all fine, but they won't be back until late. I scared poor Cream half to death before I told her that part, she must've thought something terrible happened to them._

 _Well, I guess I gotta deliver that report now. Vector, out._

—–—

Vector places the papers down on Sonic's desk. Sonic takes up the top one, and quickly scans it over. "Excellent work as always, Vector."

"Well, Espio's the one who's really into all this intelligence gathering, I just write it down."

"And that's the part I need. I'd be lost without all this, you know?" He reaches over to the side of the desk, and picks up a small, familiar computer unit. "Excuse me for a sec." He arrays all of the papers out in a row, and holds the computer out over them. Then he clears his throat. "TAL, scan documents and save in Intelligence Reports." A bright blue light projects from the bottom of the computer, which quickly sweeps across the reports. A soft chime sounds to indicate that the process is complete. Once it does, Sonic continues, "Update existing data, and begin standard analysis." He sets the computer aside and leans back in his seat. "TAL's been a lifesaver. I may need these reports, but I can't be spending all hours of the day reading them."

"Old habit from my days on the force. Reports had to be real thorough."

"You were a police detective?"

"It's a long story."

"Another time, maybe. For now…can I ask you a favor, Vector?"

"Whaddya need?"

"You said the others won't be back tonight?"

"It'll be another few hours, at least."

"Cream's really been missing Amy. It must've hit her pretty hard to hear she wasn't coming back tonight like she was expecting."

"It did."

"Do you think you could…tuck her in?"

"What? Me? Uh, I-I'm…not really good with kids."

"Really? Seems like you're doing fine with Charmy."

"Yeah, if you call yelling at him five times a day 'fine'. Besides, isn't she getting a little old for that kind of thing?"

"Hey, we're all dealing with this war in our own way. Amy tells me that Cream sometimes gets scared at night. I wish there was more I could do to help her, but we should at least do what we can."

"Then why don't _you_ do it?"

At that moment, TAL produces another chime. "Because _I_ have an analyzed report to look over. Look, I won't tell you to do anything you aren't comfortable with, but I'd appreciate it."

"Ugh, fine. I'll do it."

Sonic gives him a wink. "It's getting late. Better get to it."

—–—

Cream, dressed in floral print pajamas, sits at the foot of a thin mattress placed in the corner of the relatively large tent, Cheese starting to doze off sitting by her side. But she remains transfixed on the empty bedspread on the other side of the room, apparently belonging to Amy. A knock comes at the center post holding up the tent entrance. Cream and Cheese both look up. "Come in."

Vector has to crouch especially low to make his way in. "It's just me."

"Oh, hi Mr. Vector. Do you need something?"

"Actually, since Amy isn't back yet, I thought I'd make sure you got to bed alright."

"Thank you Mr. Vector, but that's okay. I thought I would just stay up until Amy got back."

"Well then you'd be up all night. Think how mad Amy would be."

"Oh, I guess you're right."

"Just lay down and go to sleep. She'll be back before you're up in the morning."

"Okay." Cream moves the tired Cheese over to a pillow by the side of the bed, and then lays back in her own.

Vector pulls the covers up over her. "Everything'll be fine. We'll win, just like we always do. There's nothing to be afraid of."

"Mr. Vector…will you tell me a bedtime story?"

"A bedtime story!? But I–… Aren't you–… I'm…uh…not really much of a storyteller."

"Come on, you're a detective, aren't you? Tell me about your first mystery with the Chaotix."

"Well…that one…might be a bit much for you. But I guess I _could_ tell you about the job that really put the Chaotix on the map."

"Oh, please do."

Even Cheese looks up to say, "Chao chao."

Vector can't help but smile. "…Alright." He pulls out a stool from the back of the room, and sits down by Cream's bed. "So…it began just like any other day at the office…"

—–—

 **Early Autumn, 3 B.E. – Four years ago**

 **During the events of Shadow the Hedgehog**

 _I, of course, was hard at work, as usual._

Vector reclines back in his swiveling desk chair with his feet crossed up on the table, nodding his head along to the music that blasts at full volume from his headphones. The ceiling fan above the cluttered office spins continuously. Charmy sits on a small chair on the side of the room, pointing a remote control at an old boxy TV hung up in the top corner, flipping through channels constantly.

The wide doors into the waiting room outside open as Espio moves his way inside, carrying a small brown box in one arm. "Vector, we have a package. …Vector?" Vector, eyes still closed, is so engrossed in his music that he doesn't even seem to have noticed Espio's arrival. Espio sighs and shakes his head as he places the package on the table.

"Lemme see, lemme see, I wanna see!" Charmy excitedly flies straight at Espio,trying to get a look at the package.

Espio catches him by the face, and holds him back at arm's length. "Stay back, Charmy. Or did you forget what happened with the last package?"

Charmy pulls himself back, and crosses his arms with a pout. "Humph. Fine." He turns around and flies back to his seat, resuming his channel flipping.

Espio takes out a kunai knife and skillfully swipes it across the tape seal on the box, splitting it open. He pulls out the small red radio device that sits inside. He looks up to Vector, but he's still completely oblivious. He presses a button on the side of the device, and a red light flicks on. "This is Espio of the Chaotix. We've received your package."

After a moment's delay, a distorted voice responds out of the radio's speaker. "This is the Chaotix? Excellent. I've heard good things about you. I require your detective services."

Espio closes his eyes and lets out a sigh as he realizes the familiarity of the situation. "Very good, sir. I'll just need a name and some other identifying information before we get started."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible. My identity must remain anonymous."

"I'm sorry, sir, but after a recent incident, we no longer accept anonymous jobs. Company policy."

Suddenly, Vector's large hand grabs the radio out of Espio's, as he shoves him aside. "Give me that!" He clears his throat. "Terribly sorry for the confusion, sir, but what my partner Espio _meant_ to say is that the inconvenience of an anonymous job requires us to charge a substantial extra fee."

"That will be fine. I'll pay any price. Money is no object."

Espio objects, "What about our policy? We didn't get paid last time we tried this."

Vector sees nothing but dollar signs. "Espio, don't be silly. He said he'd pay _any price_. This guy's desperate! Besides, that's our number two policy. And you know our number one, don't you?"

Espio sighs. "Never turn down work that pays. But why even have–"

Vector cuts him off by resuming his conversation with the client. "You have yourself a deal, sir."

"Excellent. This job may be an unusual one for you, but I have faith in your abilities."

"Unusual is our forté. Just tell us what you need us to do."

"The man you will be investigating is Professor Gerald Robotnik. How much do you know about the case?"

"Uhh…let me think…" Vector scratches at his head for a moment. "From that one space station, yeah? Went crazy, tried to blow up the planet, almost succeeded a few months back?"

"That is what the world believes. But Professor Gerald is an innocent man. And your job is to prove it."

"As detectives, we'll have to determine that for ourselves."

"All of the evidence you'll need is contained within the database of the Space Colony ARK. But this mission is extremely time-sensitive. In a few days' time, none of this will matter."

"Sounds like an interesting challenge."

"There's more. The ARK's computers are encrypted, and you won't be able to access the data without the encryption codes. These codes were confiscated by the military, and stored on six top secret disks. These disks were housed in the Security Hall facility on Prison Island. As I'm sure you're aware, the island was destroyed a short time before the ARK incident."

"Are you saying the data's irretrievable?"

"Not necessarily. Five of the disks were most likely scattered over the remains of the island."

"Didn't you say there were six?"

"The sixth disk was stolen by Dr. Eggman soon before the island's destruction. The data on the disk has most likely been uploaded into his personal computer system. You'll have to hack in to retrieve it."

"Hacking a computer to get the data we need to hack a bigger computer? You should be warned, we're not exactly computer experts."

"I'm certain you'll find a way. Now get to work! You're already wasting time!"

Vector finally puts the radio down. "Alright boys, you heard the man! It's time to get cracking! We'll have to split up if want to save time, so Charmy, I'm putting your tracking skills to work on disk duty. Get to Prison Island, and find those disks! …Uhh…Charmy? You've sure been awful quiet the last few minutes."

Finally paying attention to Charmy, they both realize that he stares with mouth agape at the television screen. Somehow, the babbling bee is completely without words. They follow his gaze up to the screen to see what it is that has him so shocked. On the live news report, hundreds of red and black creatures rain down from a massive vortex in the sky above a familiar dim city. They crash down into the streets, crushing cars and attacking everything in their paths. GUN soldiers try to gun them down, but they seem to have little effect. Vector and Espio are just as stunned as Charmy.

Unprompted, the voice in the radio calls out, "By now, you've likely seen the news that our planet is being invaded. This changes nothing. You must complete the mission before it's too late."

Vector finally shakes it off. "When has a little action ever gotten in our way, eh boys? We're going to get those codes, retrieve that data, and solve the case of Professor Gerald! The game is on! Now Charmy, remember, you're going to Prison Island to find the five top secret disks. Got it?"

"Uhh…yes sir!"

"And Espio, we're going to break into Eggman's base to access his computers. Charmy, you can meet us there when you're finished. Everyone ready?"

Espio nods. "Roger."

"Then c'mon, boys! Let's go!"

—–—

 _Charmy says that Prison Island was crawling with those black aliens, but somehow, he managed to find all five of the disks before we'd even penetrated Eggman's base._

Vector hangs back in the shadows of Eggman's base, arms crossed impatiently. After a moment, Espio's voice seems to emanate from nowhere, "Coast is clear. Let's move forward."

Vector stares down at an area in front of him where some slight distortions can be seen in the air, betraying Espio's camouflage. "What's with all this sneaking around, anyway? We're wasting time! Can't we just smash everything and level the place?"

"We'll never get to Eggman's computer that way. We must remain completely undetected."

"Yeah, whatever." Vector moves past the invisible Espio, turning the nearest corner and proceeding into a hallway lined with large red conduits, leading up to a tall metal door with a wide circular lock in the center. "How do we get through here? Should I break it down?"

Silently, the now-visible Espio presses a button on a panel on the wall, which causes the door to open. "That won't be necessary." On the other side of the door lies a wide circular room with a transparent ceiling that offers a view of the dusk sky outside. In the center of the room is a strange glowing machine hooked up to a large semicircular computer console, with green lit monitors showing all sorts of unintelligible information. "We should be able to get all the data we need from there."

Suddenly, Charmy flies into view, apparently having been waiting there. "Hey guys." He triumphantly displays a stack of five computer disks. "I thought you said this would be hard."

Vector shouts, "Charmy!? How'd you get in there so fast!? We've been sneaking around this base for hours!"

"Well, I _am_ the world's fastest bug. Also, I came in through the window." He points up to the ceiling, where one window panel hangs open.

Espio has already sat down at the seat in front of the computer console, and begins his work at the keyboard. Vector and Charmy walk up to watch over his shoulder. Vector looks over to one of the side screens, where a small alert has popped up. "Uh oh. Someone's been detected on the base, it looks like we've been caught!"

Charmy gasps, "Oh no! We gotta get out of here! Let's go, let's go!"

Espio keeps his focus on his work at the computer. "It's too late to turn back now. Just watch the door, and take care of any of Eggman's assassins as they come."

With a slight groan, Vector turns around and starts watching the door that has long since closed behind them. He taps his foot impatiently as Espio continues to clack at the computer keys behind them. He loses his patience entirely after a short time, and turns back around to put a hand on the back of Espio's chair. He shouts into his ear, "Aren't you done yet? At this rate, the entire day will be wasted!"

Charmy echoes, "Yeah, whole day wasted!"

Espio glances up with irritation at Vector for just a moment. "Hey, back off! Data retrieval isn't exactly me specialty." He gets back to work.

Charmy grabs Espio's arm, and starts to pull on it, strongly suggesting, "Let _me_ do it, then!"

Vector puts a hand in Charmy's face to push him back. "Stop bugging him, Charmy!"

Charmy flails his arms about, continuing to shout with his voice muffled by Vector's hand, "Lemme try, lemme try, I wanna try!"

Vector glances up with surprise as he hears a mechanical hiss coming from behind them. He and Charmy both turn to look at the door as Espio turns and leaps from his chair, taking a battle-ready stance. "An assassin!?"

As the door continues to open wider, the walking figure of Shadow the Hedgehog is revealed on the other side.

Vector greets loudly, "Well, well. If it isn't Shadow! Your timing is impeccable!" As Shadow continues his silent walk, Vector proceeds, "You know that Eggman fella pretty well, don't ya? Well, we need your help to hack into his computer…and don't ask why! And we don't have any more time to waste!" Espio has relaxed slightly, but still eyes Shadow with suspicion as he walks towards them. Charmy just seems surprised to see him there.

Shadow stops for a moment as he meets Espio directly in the eyes. Finally, he answers, "Hmm…well what a coincidence." He puts his hand on the desk chair, and Espio quickly steps aside. "I'd like to know what the good old Doctor's up to as well." He simply pushes the chair aside as he stands in front of the computer console. He glares down at the keyboard for a moment, and raises his hands as if to start working at it. But then he raises one arm up even higher above his head, and slams it down in a chop onto the console. "Haayaa!" Espio gasps and reaches out, but is much too late to stop him.

A brilliant vortex of orange light is instantly generated in the center of the room above the strange glowing machine, which pulsates as it circles around. Impressed and surprised, Vector mutters, "Whhoa…"

Without any hesitation, Shadow leaps up and disappears into the vortex.

The Chaotix stare at the pulsating light in silence for several moments, before Charmy finally shouts, "Cool!"

Vector agrees, "This may be _the_ big case!" He pats a heavy hand onto Espio's shoulder. "Espio, we're counting on you!"

Espio nods. "Roger that." He takes his own leap, spinning down into the portal.

—–—

 **Present day**

Cream breathes out, "Wow. Where did the portal go, Mr. Vector?"

"You see, that machine was really a gateway into Eggman's computer itself! By going in, Espio was actually able to find the data and grab it with his own hands! But there was a problem. Because the data was fragmented, stored in four different cyberspace terminals. And of course, it wasn't long before Eggman–… Oh, man, I can't believe how late it is! I think we'd better stop for now."

"Oh, no, please don't stop now! I need to know what happens next!"

"Chao chao!"

"Well…I guess I can keep going. But I'll have to skip ahead a bit. So, with Shadow's help, Espio got all the data we needed, and they gave Eggman a whooping on the way out. And with that, we had everything we needed to find that proof on the ARK. Everything, that is, except a way to get there…"

—–—

 **Four years ago**

 _So if we wanted any chance of getting up there in time, I had to call in a favor from an old colleague of mine._

The Chaotix walk through the metallic halls of a different base, this one plastered with the familiar 'G' emblem of the Guardian Units of Nations. Espio voices quietly, "Are you sure we should be in here, Vector? Isn't this a restricted area?"

"Relax, Espio! Trust me, this guy's an old pal of mine, we worked together on a case _way_ back. I'm sure they have an extra space shuttle or something lying around we can borrow. Besides, look around. Do you see anyone trying to stop us?"

Charmy questions, "Wouldn't they be a little bit busy trying to, you know, fight off the alien invasion and all that? Maybe they don't even know we're here."

They arrive at a metal door plastered in the white, full-decorated version of the GUN insignia. "Don't worry guys, we'll be on our way up to the ARK in no time."

The door automatically rises open in front of them, opening the way to the GUN central command room, filled with lit screens of world maps and red blips, as well as other horrifying images of the war, managed by almost two dozen workers collecting and relaying information from them. On an elevated platform in the center of it all sits a man with silvery white hair in a decorated uniform, his back turned to the door. But at the sound of the door opening, he turns to see. "Now what's going on!?" The man's mismatched pair of red and blue eyes clearly identify him as the High Commander.

Vector greets, "Commander! So good to see you again! Sorry to bother you when I'm sure you're so busy, but I've got a favor to ask, and it's very important."

"What!? Who are you, how did you get in here!?"

Charmy is quick to answer, "That's an easy one! We're the Chaotix, and the door was open!"

Espio questions quietly, "'Old pal', you said?"

"Well…really we were more like _associates_. He…might've questioned me about a case…once…" Espio groans and shakes his head.

The Commander rises to his feet, appearing furious. But before he can say anything more, the door opens once again, and a soldier steps in, throwing a salute. "Commander…the invaders! They seem to be in retreat!"

"What!?"

"Estimated over 1000 black aliens turned tail left their active battlefields, returning to wherever they came from. Alien ships tracked leaving the surface all seem to be converging at the Space Colony ARK." Vector and Espio glance at each other for a moment.

The Commander pounds his fist onto the side of the chair as he shouts, "The Eclipse Cannon! This isn't a retreat, soldier! It's an attack plan!" He presses down on a button on the chair's arm, channeling his voice through the base's PA system. "Attention all units! Mobilize all mech battle sections! We must stop the aliens from infiltrating the ARK at any cost!" He takes his hand back. "And somebody get these _clowns_ out of my command room!"

The messenger soldier holds up his weapon threateningly at the Chaotix. They all raise their hands at once in surrender. He motions for them to proceed out the door. "You heard the Commander, get moving!" They slowly file out.

 _That was when I first started getting suspicious. Everything seemed to center around that ARK. There was something that connected the Professor to those aliens, and whatever it was, my client seemed to know about it. I didn't know what the answer was yet. But I knew the only way to figure it out was to get to the ARK and see for myself. And I wasn't going to let such a minor setback keep me from finding the truth._

—–—

The Chaotix hide behind various support pillars in the hallway of the GUN base. Vector holds a finger up to his mouth, indicating for the other two to be silent. Charmy obligingly mimes zipping his mouth shut.

After a few moments, a loud voice can be heard shouting down the hallway, "Let's go, move it, move it!" A squadron of soldiers rounds the corner, jogging in formation on their way towards the Chaotix. The leader of the troop stops at a large door just in front of their hiding spots, and slides a key card down a control panel on the side, causing door to part open with a rumble. "Everyone in position, prepare for launch!" The soldiers all move inside.

As the doors begin to close behind them, the Chaotix spring from their hiding places and run inside after them, making it in just as the door shuts. On the other side is a massive hangar bay. The Chaotix watch in wonder as the metal ceiling above them parts open, flooding every square inch of the massive room in brilliant moonlight. On the ground along both walls, dozens of _F6 Big Foot_ military walker mechs of a familiar design are periodically stationed, each one with a soldier preparing to climb inside.

Vector walks up to the nearest soldier, and taps him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, sir. The Commander said he needs you to report for a special assignment."

The soldier turns with confusion. "The Commander? What now?"

"Hey, I don't know, but it seems to me like he's in a pretty bad mood today, so if I were you, I wouldn't keep him waiting."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'd better–… Hey, wait a second! You aren't a pilot, how'd you get in here!? Let me see your badge!"

"Uhh… I…"

Before the soldier can say anything else, he suddenly collapses to the floor, unconscious. Espio stands behind him with an upraised hand, apparently having struck him in the back of the neck.

"Espio, what'd you do that for!?" He looks around frantically to make sure no one else saw. But the rest of the soldiers are thoroughly distracted, most of them now closing the cockpits of their mechs.

Espio drags the body into the shadows in the corner of the hangar. "He'll be fine in the morning." He leaps into the air, and lands nimbly in the cockpit of the unconscious soldier's mech. "Let's go."

Vector climbs in with a bit less grace, Charmy flying in behind him. It quickly becomes clear that there isn't nearly enough room for all three of them, as Vector has to shove Espio aside to cram his way into the seat. The cockpit closes over them.

Espio voices, with Vector's hand still pressed over the side of his face, "This isn't going to work."

"Then you'd better get out there and…'borrow' another one for yourself!"

Charmy comments, "Uh, guys, I think it's too late for that." On the far side of the hangar, the first of the mechs are taking off, their large and bulky feet retracting inwards to leave a hovering craft that appears surprisingly maneuverable, followed by the next closest pair of mechs, continuing in formation.

Vector activates the machine and puts his hands around the main controls. "Guess we'll have to make do. This shouldn't be so hard." He presses a button which causes the thrusters to fire much too violently, but he quickly corrects the problem. "See? Easy."

With the stream of mechs rocketing away from the base, the one occupied by the Chaotix follows behind. Espio can be heard questioning, "Is this thing really spaceworthy?"

"Only one way to find out."

Charmy cheers, "Oh boy, we're going to _space_!" He starts to chant with a musical inflection, "Space, space, space, space, space, space, space, space~"

" _SHUT UP, CHARMY!_ "

—–—

The swarm of military mechs soars as a unit past the edge of the planet's atmosphere, onwards to the looming hemispherical figure of the Space Colony ARK. One mech still stands out from the others, constantly jerking around in an erratic fashion as it flies. Vector can be heard shouting, "Get your elbow out of my ribs, Espio!"

"As soon as you get yours off of my _face_."

"Yikes! Watch where you point that stinger, Charmy!"

"I'm sorry, I can't help it when you keep moving around like that! Maybe I can just sit over _here_ …"

"No, don't sit on _that,_ you idiot!" The mech's main thrusters fire hard once again, rocketing the machine to the front of the swarm. As if they'd given some sort of silent signal, all of the other mechs begin to follow their lead, firing their thrusters and forming up in a tight formation with the Chaotix at point. And approaching them in a much less organized swarm from the direction of the ARK is a mass of flying red and black creatures.

Espio comments, "Doesn't look like we'll get past without a fight."

"Figure out how to use these missiles, Espio! Charmy, you handle the gun. I'll keep us flying straight."

Charmy cheers, "Yahoo! Alien hunting, alien hunting!"

Directly in front of them, a large Black Hawk fires the first shot in the form of a wave of energy from its tail. Vector is forced to turn the mech into a steep dive to dodge underneath the attack, as all of the mechs behind them break off into battle. The space field erupts into a firefight as attacks are rapidly exchanged from both sides. As the Chaotix mech pulls back up into a climb, the gatling gun on its front begins to fire. A small Black Wing near the line of fire attempts to fly out of the way, but the arc the mech flies in causes the stream of bullets to hit its mark, shredding the creature into splattering green goop.

Charmy cheers, "Yeah, I got one!"

Espio comments, "Nice shot. But don't get cocky." A missile fires out of each of the launchers on the mech's shoulders, each one homing in on a different Black Hawk, blowing them both to bits.

A voice shouts out of the radio, _"There's too many of them, we can't break through!"_ Just as he says, the swarm of aliens seems to far outnumber the flying mechs, and seems to be pushing most of them back.

Vector shouts, "I've got an idea! Charmy, be ready on those guns!" He violently turns the mech on its side, and pulls it into a sweep. The gatling gun fires, spraying bullets in a wide arc that shreds through at least a dozen more of the aliens.

Charmy shouts in a surprisingly deep voice, "Yippee-ki-yay, brain-suckers!"

Espio fires off a whole volley of homing missiles, dealing almost as much damage. "They don't eat brains, Charmy. You watch too much TV." They've made a fair dent in the aliens' numbers, evening out the odds, but there's still a long battle ahead.

"Says _you_."  
Another voice comes in over the radio, this one recognizable as the leader of the squadron. _"This is F6-18! They're on my tail, I can't shake 'em!"_ Another mech zooms past theirs, closely followed by a trio of armored Black Volts.

Vector moves them in to follow behind at top speed. "Let's help him out, Espio!"

Espio fires off three more missiles. Coming in from straight behind, they take quite some time to catch up, but eventually they hit their targets, taking out all three of the pursuing aliens. The Chaotix mech flies out through the explosion, leaving it covered in soot and green alien goop.

The radio sounds off again, _"Great shooting out there, F6-02. Thanks to you, we might just turn this around. Remind me to give you a medal when this is all over, Phil."_

Charmy questions, "Uh, do you think we should tell him the guy he's talking to is still unconscious in the hangar bay?"

Vector seems to disagree. "Let him give the poor guy a medal, he deserves it."

Espio suddenly shouts, "There's an unidentified craft approaching on radar!"

"Well whose side is it on!?"

"I think it's…" Before he can finish, a flurry of laser fire blasts past them, cutting a hole into the ranks of the remaining aliens. A moment later, a familiar red craft with a two-tailed logo plastered on the side rockets along the same path, continuing past the battlefield on its way to the ARK. "…Sonic!"

"Doesn't matter who it is, they just gave us the opening we needed! Let's find that computer room, boys!" The Chaotix mech flies in behind the trail left by Sonic's craft, and rockets through behind it. One of the Black Volts in the back of the swarm notices them passing through, and fires off one of its organic worm missiles. Arcing through the air, the missile impacts the side of the mech and detonates.

Warning sirens wail as the mech spirals out of control, trailing smoke out of its mostly-destroyed left side. "Brace yourselves, boys! This is gonna be a rough landing!"

Charmy screams, "We're gonna crash! Ahh!"

The mech tumbles towards one of the many metal platforms that hang beneath the Space Colony above. Vector tries to keep the nose pointed forwards with all the control he can manage as they hit the ground hard, skidding across the floor and wreaking further havoc on the already-damaged machine. When it finally comes to a stop, everything goes still.

A hard pound comes from the inside of the cracked cockpit. A second one blows the canopy completely off. Vector is the first to climb out, coughing through the smoke that billows out. Charmy and Espio quickly follow.

Espio looks back at the flaming wreck of the mech. "I don't think we'll be able to return that anymore."

Vector waves it off. "Eh, they won't miss it."

Charmy is busy staring off into space. "Uhh…Vector? Wasn't half the moon blown up a couple of months ago?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"So…why can I see the whole moon, right over there?" Charmy points beyond the brilliant blue horizon of Earth, to the full moon that rises above it.

"Well, that's because…uhh…come to think of it, I have no idea."

Espio suggests, "A mystery for another time, perhaps."

"Espio's right, we need to get moving! We only have a few hours left before our client's deadline!"

 _That ARK was_ massive _. So to save time, we agreed to split up and search on our own. And luckily, I had another run-in with Shadow, he led me straight to the computer room. And that was when I realized. Professor Gerald was the one who created Shadow. And here Shadow was, somehow deeply involved in this war. To be honest, I wasn't sure if he was with the aliens, or against them. But it was the exact connection I'd been looking for. The answer to the mystery of the Professor's innocence was standing right there in front of me. So you can imagine my surprise…when I learned that he was an alien all along._

—–—

"Black Doom…" Shadow clenches a fist, lit by the blinking green lights of the computer room. "…I need to know the truth." Vector stands beside him, staring with mouth agape at the robed alien overlord. "Am I really as the humans say…an evil creation? Tell me…I need to know!"

Black Doom slowly floats down to ground level. "…It is true. I created you…you are a part of me."

Vector clenches his own fists, resolving to do whatever he can. He leans over Shadow's side. "Hey, Shadow…you okay?"

Shadow slowly looks up from the ground. "If that's true…then I'll have to accept responsibility for my crimes. But first…I will avenge the victims who died aboard the ARK on that tragic day!" Shadow springs at Black Doom, prepared to attack. But as he is about to strike the alien's head, Black Doom seems to partially fade out of existence, and Shadow passes straight through.

Black Doom turns around again to face Shadow with a terrifying laugh. "The humans seem to have convinced you of this absurdity. They have brainwashed you and your feeble mind. If you wish to know the _full_ truth…you will return to the Black Comet." Black Doom waves out an arm, and instantly becomes cloaked in a harsh blue light, forcing Shadow and Vector both to shield their eyes. In another instant, he is gone.

For a few moments, Shadow looks down at his own hands. Then he lets them drop, and merely stares at the floor.

Vector walks up to him with concern. "Shadow…?"

Shadow doesn't look up. "It's all true… I've caused so much destruction…" He shakes his head as his eyes fill with sorrow. "I should never have been created…" He closes his eyes and clenches his fists. "Is this who I am?"

Vector shouts, "Hey, don't go there…yet! Things may not be what they seem!" Shadow turns to walk away silently. "You could be…" Vector seems to cut himself off as he watches Shadow exit in silence.

 _You could be innocent. That's what I wanted to tell him. You could be the selfless creation of an innocent man. But I didn't know that. Not for certain. Not yet. I wanted to tell him to stay, to tell him that I was about to find all the answers he was looking for. But I knew where he was going. I knew he needed to be on that comet. And we had our own job to do, we were running out of time fast. So I called up the boys, and we got to work._

—–—

 _We managed to extract the data from the computer room without much trouble, and only then did our employer tell us that we would need to take it to the Research Lab to view it. He also warned us that all the data would delete itself if we weren't finished before the deadline. He generously offered us a bonus for the inconvenience. And before long, we had everything ready to go. Besides a few problems getting the data decrypted._

Espio types away at the main console near the wide windows of the familiar Research Lab.

Charmy quickly starts to tug at his arm. "Espio…are you in yet!?"

Vector puts a hand over his face and pushes him back. "Quiet, Charmy!" While Charmy continues to struggle against his hand, he leans over Espio's shoulder. "Espio, we need you to focus! If we don't hurry, all the data we recovered will be lost!"

Espio shakes his head, clearly under stress. "Easier said than done! Who signed me up for this, anyway?"

Charmy finally escapes from Vector's grasp, taking a deep breath in. "That's it, I'll do it! Get out of the way!" He flies straight at the console.

Vector shouts after him, "Get back here, you idiot!" He's much too late to stop Charmy from making use of what he learned from Shadow, slamming into the computer with the full force of his shoulder, causing a loud crash. Espio steps back just in time.

Suddenly, the diamond-shaped screen above the console lights up with static. All three of them look to each other in surprise, simultaneously echoing, "Hey, it's working!"

They all watch on in interest as the static solidifies into an image of the white-coated Professor Gerald Robotnik. Solemnly, he begins to speak. _"Shadow, my son… If you're listening to this, then the worst has happened. You need to know the truth…"_

—–—

The Commander stands beside the President in the GUN command room, watching the very same video play out on every screen in the room. _"The government plans to shut down this research facility…to cease all of our research…and imprison all who know about you. I made a terrible mistake, Shadow. It's all my fault…making contact with that comet. Now listen very carefully…"_

The President watches the screen in confusion. "Professor Gerald…?"

The Commander gives a slow nod in approval. "Vector…"

—–—

In the deepest part of the Black Comet's core, Shadow kneels before the imposing figure of Black Doom, the seven Chaos Emeralds arrayed above them. But all around them, floating screens of unknown origin continue to play the same message. " _In 50 years, the Black Comet will return…they plan to harness its powers to destroy this planet. The only way to stop them…was to develop a way to use the very power_ they _intended to use, against them…"_

Black Doom looks around in confusion. "What!? What is this!?"

Shadow looks up from the ground with a smirk, and answers with only a single word. "Vector."

—–—

In another part of the comet, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Sonic, Rouge, and even Dr. Eggman all stand perfectly still, some in more awkward positions than others, paralyzed in place by the effects of the alien gas. _"Shadow…it's up to_ you _. Only_ you _can stop them. I developed the Eclipse Cannon…it's the only weapon that can destroy the Black Comet."_

Eggman declares, "That's it! It's brilliant!"

Tails voices, "I don't understand. Who's sending this message?"

Amy wears a smile. "It _has_ to be Vector…"

—–—

 **Present Day**

Vector clasps his hands beside his face, and continues in his best teenage girl impression, "He's the coolest, handsomest, most brilliant detective there _ever_ was!" Cream can't help but giggle. Cheese has already fallen asleep.

Suddenly, a voice declares from outside, "Oh, I said _that_ , did I?"

Cream shouts excitedly, "Amy!"

Amy pushes aside the entrance flap and ducks into the tent. "Now what exactly is going on here? Why aren't you asleep, Cream? Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"It's okay, Vector was just telling me a bedtime story."

Vector scratches behind his head with an awkward chuckle. "I, uh…guess we both got a little caught up in it."

Amy sighs for a moment. "That's alright. I'm glad Cream had someone to keep her company. But I think you'd better get going. Now."

Cream cries, "Wait! He hasn't finished the story yet!"

Vector thinks for a moment. "Well…there's not really much else to tell." Amy nods for him to go on. "Inspired by the message we sent, Shadow was able to fight off Black Doom's mind control, take back the Chaos Emeralds, and destroy him and the Black Comet he came from. And once the world learned that the Chaotix were responsible for it all, people were beating down our door trying to hire us. We were busy for a long time after that. And _that's_ the story of the job that put the Chaotix on the map."

"But what about the Professor? Was he really innocent? Didn't he still try to crash the ARK into the planet?"

"Hey, you're pretty inquisitive. A good quality for a detective." She smiles at the praise. "All the data we needed to prove the Professor's innocence was in that computer. As he said in his message, his plan was to use the Eclipse Cannon to destroy the Black Comet. But if the Black Aliens learned about that plan, he knew they might try to sabotage the cannon. So he came up with a failsafe. He would sooner destroy the Earth than let Black Doom have it. So he developed a program that would crash the ARK if the aliens took total control. But a few months earlier, when Sonic and his friends used a fake Chaos Emerald to destroy the Eclipse Cannon, it caused a malfunction in the ARK's systems that made the program trigger early."

Before Cream can say anything else, Amy interjects, "Alright, I think that's enough. Time to get some sleep."

Cream lowers her head. "Okay…" Vector gets up to leave. But before he gets very far, Cream questions, "Vector? Will you tell me another story sometime?"

Vector stops to look back at her with a smile. "We'll see." He ducks out through the exit, into the open night.

After walking for a little while, Vector stops to look up at the sky. He takes note of a particularly bright point of light in the sky, which can only be the Space Colony ARK. He puts on a smirk. "Well, I guess there was… _one_ other part to the story."

—–—

 **Four years ago**

A man lays out on what appears to be a hospital bed in an old, stuffy room. It's impossible to get a good look at him. But on the television screen in front of him, Professor Gerald's message plays out. _"Shadow…you are the only hope to save mankind as we know it. The future of this planet depends on…you!"_

Suddenly, the young Maria Robotnik appears on the screen beside her grandfather. _"Don't worry, grandfather. Shadow and I will protect this planet. Right, Shadow?"_

As a nurse enters the room, the elderly man raises a haggard arm high enough to point his bony finger excitedly at the screen. "Th…that's Maria… That's my daughter!"

The nurse moves over to the man's bedside. "That's very nice, Alfred." The nurse picks up the remote from his nightstand, and turns off the TV. "But that's enough TV for today. It's time to get some sleep."

The man, Alfred, watches through his thick spectacles as the nurse leaves him alone again. His health seems quite poor, with a gaunt face and wrinkled skin. The hairs on his once-well-trimmed mustache have grown long, wiry and unkempt. He seems to wheeze on every breath.

After a few moments, a small red communicator device buzzes from his nightstand, and Vector's voice comes out. "You were right, sir. All the data is here. Professor Gerald was innocent."

Alfred reaches around to pick up the device, and holds it on his chest. "You've done excellent work today, Detective. You've cleared the name of an innocent man…and likely saved the world as well."

"That honor is yours, sir. No one would've ever known if it weren't for you, Lieutenant Robotnik. It's been an honor working for you."

"So you know…?"

"I'm a detective, sir. It's my job to know." After a moment, he adds, "I didn't tell the others. Your secret is safe with me. But if I might ask…why all the secrecy?"

Alfred takes a long breath. "When Shadow was launched from the ARK 50 years ago, it was I who found him. But eventually, the military found out. And when they did, I was given a choice. Secrecy…or execution. If I ever breathed a word about Project Shadow, or what happened on the ARK, I would be put to death, like my father. So I stayed silent. I held out all this time, knowing the day would come when the fate of the world would depend on the information I wasn't allowed to share. But none of that matters, now." He takes a long pause. "You'll find everything I have deposited in your account shortly. I no longer have any need of it. And good work such as yours deserves reward. For making everything worthwhile…I sincerely thank you. But now…I wish to be left alone."

"I understand. It was a pleasure, sir." The device goes silent, and turns off. Alfred places it aside.

For a long time, he stares at the blank screen still in front of him, as if the image of his long lost family were still there. "Father…I know that your anger with humanity was true. I once felt that same anger. Your last words were so filled with hate… Perhaps you truly did think…to reprogram the ARK…to carry out your revenge. Perhaps you even began the change. But you couldn't go through with it. Because of your dedication to the good of humanity that had lasted so long…and because of Maria's. It was only an accident that the world still saw you at your worst. But now…they've seen you at your best. Now…they see you as the hero you are. I hope I've made you proud…"

He takes another long pause. Then he begins again. "Shadow…there were so many terrible things I thought about you. So many terrible mistakes I've made, that I know you will one day face the consequences of. I know I can never make up for that. But I hope that I've prepared you for when that day comes…"

The next pause is the longest yet, so long that he almost seems finished. But still, he starts again. "Maria…my daughter… There hasn't been a day of these last decades I haven't longed to see your face again. I never thought that I would make it this far. But every day, you gave me the strength to carry on. To wait until the day that I could show the world your grandfather's legacy…that I could light the way for your closest friend…that I could save the world that you loved so much. I did it all for you… Maria…"

He takes one long, deep breath in. Then he finally lets it all out. The curtains in the window flutter gently. Then everything goes completely still.

 **To be continued…**


	43. S1 E6: Chapter 11: Lost Chronicles

**The Twilight Cage**

 **Several years ago**

The brilliant golden figure of Super Sonic rises up into the air, staring down his opponent for just a moment. Across from him, radiating with the power of the Master Emerald, stands the elderly staff-wielding Echidna known as Imperator Pir'Oth Ix.

Super Sonic curls up in the air and launches at the crazed Nocturnus leader with impossible speed. Ix never flinches, his aura seeming to protect him from the attack. But Sonic doesn't relent, rebounding back in for a second attack, and a third. He rises up and slams down from above, he loops around and strikes from the side, crouches down and strikes back up in an uppercut before slamming back down once again, dealing greater and greater damage with each blow. He zooms around Ix in a circle, striking over and over again from every angle. He finally flies backwards and directs out his hands, firing off a massive beam of Chaos Energy that completely envelops the Echidna.

When the smoke clears, Ix has collapsed onto the floor.

Sonic's golden aura begins to fade as he lands on the ground. Behind him, all of his friends and allies stand, tired out from the long battle, but cheering at his victory. Among them is the Echidna girl in Nocturnus armor, Shade.

Sonic looks to the collapsed form of the Imperator. "It's over, Ix. You've lost."

Ix looks up sharply with his glowing blue eyes. "Yes…you have defeated me. You have won the day. But if I can't leave this nightmare prison…then neither will you!" In a brilliant flash of light leaving spewing sparks behind, Ix disappears, as the ground begins to rumble.

Amy looks around in confusion. "What did he do?" Everyone struggles to keep their balance as the ground shudders again.

Tails cries out, "What's happening!?"

Shade the Echidna steps up for all to see. "Ix activated the shutdown sequence! He's closing the wormhole!"

Sonic shouts, "Everyone, hold onto something!" Each tremor is more violent than the last.

Amy cries out, "Sonic, what do we do!? We're doomed!"

Tails presses a button on a small device he holds. "Maybe not! Our ride's here!"

Sonic commands, "Everyone, to the _Cyclone_!"

As a group, they run from the Nocturne temple. Waiting for them just outside, with boarding platform extended, is Tails' dimension-traveling ship, the _Blue Cyclone_. One by one, they all board the ship, and the door shuts behind them. The _Cyclone_ quickly lifts off, turning to face the massive vortex torn open in the starry sky of the Twilight Cage. All engines fire, blasting the ship towards the wormhole as it seems to shrink away from them. But at top speed, they just barely manage to pass through the shrinking vortex as it closes behind them, forever re-locking the Twilight Cage.

Inside the ship, everyone breathes a sigh of relief. Tails looks around from the pilot's chair. "Everyone make it aboard?"

Sonic nods. "We're all here."

Amy cheers, "Brilliant, Tails! I didn't know the _Cyclone_ could do that!"

"Hey, Eggman and I designed this ship ourselves! She'll surprise you!"

Knuckles nods in agreement. "Well done."

Amy continues, "And we stopped Ix! The world is saved!"

"Yeah. Now we just have to get back there."

As if on cue, the ship starts to rumble. Tails shouts, "Everyone hang on! I'm working on that!"

Knuckles stands close to Shade, as if to protect her. Amy takes Sonic's hand. He doesn't seem to mind. The ship rumbles again, more violently than the last time.

Rouge demands, "Tails, what's happening!?"

"I think there's…some kind of malfunction in the Dimensional Buffer! I'm trying to compensate!"

Outside, the ship shudders through the turbulence between space, until it finally tears out through a hole into normal space. In an instant, warning sirens wail as the ship is detected by satellites, searchlights, and hundreds of cannons and guns carpeting the mechanized city below. Hardly a moment later, they open fire.

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 6 — Sonic Chronicles Special Episode**

 **Chapter 11: Lost Chronicles**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, May 13th, 0 A.E. Knuckles the Echidna reporting.**_

 _Cyber City. One of the most dangerous places on the planet. Eggman built the city up with every trap and weapon he could get his hands on. Enough to earn this place the nickname…Genocide City. And somehow,_ I _got stuck on recon duty. Of course, there could be a reason he's built up all these defenses. Rumor has it that this is where Eggman's holed up, where he gives all his orders from. If I can confirm those rumors, we might be able to take the fight straight to Eggman, and finally put an end to this war. If not, I'm putting my life on the line for no good reason. Nothing like imminent danger to make a guy miss his old, quiet, secluded floating island. Kind of makes me wonder what–… What the heck is_ that _!?_

—–—

Emperor Eggman stands beside the massive semicircular window of his dim throne/command room, looking down at the great mechanical Cyber City below from his mighty tower. He looks up, noticing the disturbance in the evening sky before Orbot's call even reaches him.

"Sir, I'm getting a very strange energy reading. Some sort of dimensional breach in the atmosphere."

Eggman glares at the growing vortex in the sky. "Lock all scanners on it. I want to know what it is, and what it's doing here."

"There's something coming out, boss! It looks like…a ship!"

"Ship!? What kind of ship!?"

"…I think you'd better see for yourself, sir." After a moment, a holographic screen lights up in front of the window, showing a greatly zoomed image of the wormhole, and the craft that exits through it. The _Cyclone_.

Eggman's eyes lock on the side of the ship's back fin, proudly displaying an emblem with a star in the middle, of the kind that Sonic might use. "It's the Rebellion! We're under attack! Lock all cannons, shoot them down!"

—–—

The moment the inside of the _Cyclone_ calms down, an automated message suddenly appears on the main viewscreen. On it, the less regal Dr. Eggman gives a devilish smirk. "Welcome back, _team_. You've been gone a long time… Might have been better if you hadn't returned. But I was hoping you would." The first blast from below hits before anyone has a chance to react.

—–—

Knuckles watches in shock from atop a moderately-sized building as a hailstorm of laser fire cuts through the silver and blue craft, covering it with explosions as it quickly dips out of the hazy red sky. From the smoke of the explosions, several tiny figures are thrown outwards. The turrets on the ground continue to fire relentlessly, though most of them now miss their mark, as the smoking craft plummets far off to the left, past the cybernetic city and into the grassy hills beyond.

But Knuckles remains transfixed by one of the scattered figures, falling ever closer to him. "That's…a person!" He sprints for the edge of the building, and leaps over the side. "Don't worry! I've got you!" He glides in the direction of the figure, deeper into the heart of the city. With perfect timing, he catches the figure in his outstretched arms, and they land safely on the ground together.

Knuckles gently sets the barely-conscious figure on the ground. "Hey…are you alright?" Though he sounds concerned, he takes a step back in surprise the moment he gets a good look.

Slowly, she rises to her feet. Though she wears the full, menacing Nocturnus mask and helmet to go with her armor, the purple marking on her forehead clearly identifies her as Shade. "Knuckles…? How did you…?"

Knuckles cautiously raises his fists as he continues to step back, prepared for a fight with the strange marauder. "Who are you? _What_ are you?"

"What are you talking about, Knuckles? It's me, Shade."

"I don't know you. How do you know my name?"

"This is silly, what's gotten into you?" She reaches up a hand to press down on the side of her helmet, causing it to fade away with a faint purple light, retracting into her headband by some futuristic technology, and revealing her face to him. "See? It's just me."

Knuckles gasps aloud. He stumbles back another step, gaping at the sight of the Echidna warrior. "W…what!? You're…you're an Echidna! But that's impossible!"

"That's exactly what you said when we met. Don't you remember me, Knuckles?"

"What kind of trick are you trying to pull!? One of Eggman's androids, maybe?"

Shade looks down to the ground, scanning her eyes back and forth as she thinks. "Something is _very_ wrong." She looks up, around at the city. "This place looks like Metropolis…but it isn't." She closes her eyes. "What was it that Tails said…? 'A malfunction…in the Dimensional Buffer.' Of course, that must be it."

"Tails!? What did you do with him!? Answer me!"

"Knuckles…this is going to sound strange, but…" She suddenly gasps. "Look out!" Catching him by surprise, she dives on top of him, tackling him to the ground. The laser blast passes over them a moment later.

They both stand to get a look at the ambusher, the leader of a squadron of four Egg Pawns. Shade voices, "The others might still be in danger, we need to get out of here. Just follow my lead." As if from nowhere, she pulls out a small spherical device, and throws it at the lead Egg Pawn. The grenade detonates in a huge cloud of smoke. Knuckles hesitantly glances back at Shade for a moment, but runs in for an attack before the advantage fades, striking through the smoke cloud. With well-timed precision, the other Echidna rushes in after him, holding out a closed fist as a blade of purple light is generated in her hand, which she uses to cut down the robot just as the last of the smoke fades. The two both jump back, putting distance between them and the remaining opponents.

Unrelenting, Knuckles runs right back in to punch at another Pawn, knocking it down. Shade acts the moment he's done, creating a second blade in her opposite hand, and leaping up to slice at a third robot, taking it down as well. The remaining robot fires off a shot at Knuckles, but he dodges out of the way as he runs in for a powerful uppercut, taking down the last robot and winning the battle.

Shade nods in approval. "I see you haven't lost your skill in battle."

Knuckles isn't sure how to respond. But after a moment, he manages, "There'll be more robots on the way. You're right, we should get out of here."

Shade nods in agreement, and they run together past the wreckage of the defeated robots.

—–—

What remains of the _Cyclone_ has left a long, smoking trail of dirt carved through the grassy hill. Much of the front portion of the craft has been torn and crumpled, but it seems mostly intact despite the amount of fire it took. Shade and Knuckles run for it from the direction of the city.

Knuckles notes, "That's the ship you fell out of. It appeared in the sky through some kind of portal. Where did it come from?"

Shade answers simply, "The Twilight Cage."

"And what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"I'll explain everything once we find the others." They stop as they reach the side of the ship. Shade moves right for the door on the side, but it appears to be stuck. "Help me with this."

Knuckles steps up, and digs his fingers into the small opening between the door and the rest of the hull. They pull together, ripping the door completely out. Smoke pours out from the inside of the ship. But the sound of coughing confirms that people are alive inside.

One figure quickly moves out to meet them, silhouetted by the smoke. But the voice of Sonic is unmistakable. "Shade, it's good to see you're okay. Knuckles is…" His figure is revealed as the smoke clears. He seems just a little bit shorter, his quills just a little bit larger than the Sonic that Knuckles knows. But he is unquestionably Sonic the Hedgehog. "…standing right there next to you?"

Knuckles scratches his head with confusion. "Sonic? How did you get in there, what's going on here?"

Sonic crosses his arms with a slight scowl. "That's what I was going to ask you. Shade?"

Shade lowers her head slightly. "I think I can explain. But _he_ needs to see for himself."

Sonic seems to object to the idea. "I don't like this. Why should we trust him?"

"He's saved my life once already. We can trust him, at least for now."

Knuckles growls, "Can you two stop talking about me like I'm not here?"

Sonic closes his eyes with a long sigh. "Alright." He steps aside. "Come on in."

Knuckles somewhat aggressively moves in first. Waiting inside is a small group of familiar faces, including Shadow, Rouge, Amy, Cream, and even Big the Cat. A few faces are notably missing. But Knuckles is far too distracted by the figure lying out on the ground to notice. The figure of himself, lying unconscious on the floor. He swears under his breath, "Mother of Chaos…"

Shade steps in behind him. "You're probably thinking this is another trick. But I believe I have the answer." Sonic listens in eagerly. "When we were exiting the wormhole, Tails mentioned a malfunction in the Dimensional Buffer. As you may remember, that component had to be repaired during our travels in the Twilight Cage, using parts from my Warp Belt. So I'm familiar with the technology. I believe that we encountered dimensional turbulence within the wormhole which the Buffer failed to compensate for, causing us to exit in the wrong dimension."

Everyone stands in a stunned silence for a few moments. Amy is the first to speak, still bearing a doubtful expression. "So you're saying we're in another dimension…right now? _This_ isn't our world?"

Shade nods. "All the proof you need is standing right here. This Knuckles is an inhabitant of this dimension. Our Knuckles was…injured in the crash?"

Sonic steps up to the middle of the room. "Yeah. He seems okay for now, but I'm no doctor. He needs medical attention." He looks up to the conscious Knuckles questioningly. "Is there somewhere nearby we can take him?"

Knuckles still doesn't speak for a short time. He takes another glance back at Shade before he finally does. "…No hospital will take him. … …I'm not supposed to tell anyone this, but…our base is just a few miles from here. We might be able to do something for him there. And…we might able to help you get back home, too."

Sonic has to think for a moment. "That sounds a little suspicious."

Shade immediately objects, "Our Knuckles needs help. Now's not the time to refuse help that's offered."

Sonic looks back to the rest of the group. "What do you guys think?"

Shadow is the first to offer an opinion. "We certainly aren't accomplishing anything waiting around out here. We should do whatever it takes to get back to our own dimension as soon as possible. Right now, that means believing him."

Amy ponders, "Even if he isn't _our_ Knuckles, he's still…basically the same person, isn't he? If we can trust our Knuckles, can't we trust him, too?"

Rouge counters, "I wouldn't be too sure. This could be some kind of freaky mirror universe where everything's backwards."

Big suddenly interrupts, "Wait a minute…" Everyone stops to listen. "Since when did Knuckles have a brother?" A collective groan sounds through the room.

Sonic lets out a sigh. "I don't think we have much of a choice right now. Take us to your base, Knuckles."

Rouge keeps up, "Fine. But if their version of Tails has a goatee, I'm out."

Shade looks around for a moment. "Sonic…what happened to Tails and Omega?"

Sonic looks down and shakes his head in shame. "One problem at a time. We have to hope they can handle themselves."

—–—

Tails slowly comes to consciousness in the dim jail cell. He looks around cautiously, clutching at his head. "What…what happened…?"

He starts to pace back and forth as he continues to think. "We were…attacked… We fell out of the ship… We were…captured?" As he turns to pace the other way, he notices another figure in the opposite corner, a deactivated Omega. He runs up to see closer. "Omega… He must've been damaged in the fall…"

Another voice responds, "I wouldn't be worried about the robot, if I were you."

Tails turns with surprise. "Eggman! I'm so glad you're here, maybe you can help us break out of here!"

Emperor Eggman, in his long, gold-trimmed jacket, steps into view on the other side of the bars. "Now why would I want to do that?"

Tails runs up to the bars to talk to him face-to-face. "Something happened to this world while we were gone, I don't know what it is, but you were here! You've seen it happen! Why weren't you there to guide us in like you said, who attacked us?"

"You ask a lot of questions for a prisoner. How about _I_ ask a few? Let's start with that ship of yours. Where did you build it? What technology did you use to open that portal?"

"What do you mean? You know all that already, you helped me build it!"

"I don't have the faintest idea what you're talking about."

"But… but…" Tails glances back and forth as he continues to think. Then something dawns on him. "The message… 'Might have been better if you hadn't returned'… What did you mean by that?"

"I never sent you any message. I'm beginning to think you've completely lost your mind, fox boy. Now whether you answer my questions or not, you'll still make an excellent bargaining tool for the Rebellion. But I don't intend to promise you returned unharmed. So I suggest you cooperate."

"Eggman…you promised you'd reformed. You helped us save the world from the Nocturnus invasion. I thought you were…were…" Tears begin to fill his eyes. "…our friend."

"Then you really _have_ gone mad. I'll return shortly. For your sake, I hope you're in a more cooperative mood by then." He turns and walks back the way he came.

Tails reaches after him. But there's nothing he can say.

—–—

The more familiar Sonic the Hedgehog sits at the desk in the center of his tent, carefully reading over the screen on his TAL computer. He absently scratches at the small discolored scar still left on the side of his arm. A knock comes at the center post of the tent entrance.

Sonic looks up with slight surprise. "Come in."

Instead of complying, the voice of Tails calls from outside, "Sonic…there's some people here to see you."

"People?"

"I…think you'd better see for yourself."

"Umm…sure?" Sonic waits as he watches the entrance.

After a moment, the leader of the visiting group ducks into the tent. He can't help but smirk as he gets his first good look at himself. "Hi. I'm Sonic. But you probably already knew that." After a moment, he adds, "There's more of us."

Sonic sits speechless at his desk for quite some time. Finally, he manages, "…Let's gather everyone in the mess tent."

—–—

The group from the _Cyclone_ stands across from the group at home in the camp, including Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, Cream, Shadow, Rouge, Omega, Espio, Charmy, and Hero. They are gathered in the large eating area, with Sonic standing at the front of each group. Though tables and chairs are set up, no one sits.

Shade finishes explaining, "…We defeated Ix, and escaped from the Twilight Cage before the wormhole closed completely. But our ship had seen much battle. Our Dimensional Buffer was damaged, and as a result, we came out here, instead of in our own dimension."

Beside her, Sonic nods. "I know it sounds pretty crazy. But that's how we got here. And that's why we need your help."

The Rebellion's leader shrugs. "To be honest, we've dealt with this kind of thing before. Other dimensions, even another version of me. But meeting _him_ wasn't quite this…uncanny."

By his side, Knuckles suggests, "I think we'd better talk about labels, before things get too confusing."

The Sonic from the _Cyclone_ group nods in agreement. "You're the home team here. We're just the visitors."

Home Sonic nods as well. "You make it sound like the Interdimensional Olympics. But fair enough. So where do we go from here?"

Visitor Sonic doesn't need long to think. "Tails and Omega are still missing. Now that Knuckles is being taken care of, our priority needs to be finding them."

"That isn't good news. If they fell into the city, Eggman most likely captured them."

"Then we'll break them out."

"I don't think that's a very good idea. Cyber City is one of the most dangerous places on the planet. It's completely overrun with Egg Pawns, Elite ones, too."

"In the last few days, we've infiltrated Metropolis while it was overrun with Marauders and reprogrammed robots, not to mention the Nocturne itself. If those 'Egg Pawns' are anything like Swat Bots, they'll be no problem."

"What's a Swat Bot?"

Visitor Sonic is stunned for just a moment. "Wow, we really are in a different dimension. But that doesn't matter. No obstacle is going to stop us from getting our friends back. Right, guys?"

Rouge doesn't seem so convinced. But she doesn't say anything one way or the other.

Shadow answers for her, "That would be foolish. The _Cyclone_ is still our only chance at getting home. Since it's clear there's nothing that can help us here, we should focus on getting it repaired, instead of leaving it out in the open for Eggman to take."

Visitor Sonic seems to be growing irritated. "What about Omega? You just want to leave him behind?"

"We won't leave anyone behind. Omega can probably break them out himself. If not, we can worry about them _after_ we have a way back."  
"Easy for you to say! My friends aren't _robots_ like yours! They can be hurt! Every second we don't help them!"

Everyone stands in stunned silence for a few moments. Both versions of Rouge raise an eyebrow.

Visitor Amy softly takes her Sonic's hands. "Sonic…I know it's hard, but…I think they have a point."

Sonic lets out another long sigh. But he doesn't say anything.

Finally, home Sonic questions, "Everyone…can I…talk to myself, alone, for a few minutes?"

After a moment, members of both groups start to file out through the tent's entrance, until only the two Sonics remain.

Visitor Sonic sighs once again. "…I messed up, didn't I?"

"It looks that way."

"I'm still wondering whether or not I can trust you. And here I am, giving you reason not to trust _me_."

"You're still wondering? Why's that?"

"You're rebels, aren't you? Like…war, sabotage…terrorism? That kind of thing?"

"The people are our priority. No one ever gets hurt. No one ever gets threatened. We've all sworn to never stoop that low."

"It just doesn't sound like the kind of thing we'd ever be involved in."

"The way I see it…there's only one difference between us. When you had your final battle with Eggman, you won. You thought he was gone for good. Well for us, we lost. _He_ thought _I_ was dead. If that'd happened to you…do you think you'd be doing anything different now? Do you think you'd just give up and let Eggman have the planet?"

"I guess not…"

"If you don't mind me asking…how did you end up becoming the leader of your team? It seems like you have a lot of hard heads to deal with."

"Yeah, that Shadow can be a Grade-A jerk sometimes. I guess it all just…sort of happened. I was off on my own for a long time. And when I came back, it was because everyone needed my help. So I took charge. Knuckles was really against it after we first broke him out. Even Tails admitted that I didn't really have the right to tell him what to do, after being gone so long. But I guess everyone just got used to it. Except Shadow. He still argues with me every chance he gets."

"I think you and Shadow are more alike than you think. When something matters to you…it can set you off."

"And make me come off as a jerk, too. Yeah. So what about you, then? How'd you end up leading a Rebellion?"

"It was…sort of the opposite, for me. I didn't want anything to do with it. I would've been happy just running into whatever someone else tells me to. But everyone else thought otherwise. They pushed me to step up and lead. Even Shadow."

"And of course, you ended up better at it."

"Better? If you ask me, I'm terrible at this. Do you know what I've accomplished as leader these last four months? Absolutely nothing! But look at you. You've been through some crazy stuff in the last few days alone, without even taking a break. And you _won_. The first battle, at least. You seem like a pretty good leader to me. All your friends are counting on you, of course you're going to get upset when you can't help some of them. Especially with all the stress you've already been under. If I were in your shoes, I'm sure I would've said the same thing. Though…I guess that doesn't mean much, coming from yourself."

"…You'd be surprised. But…do you think they're right? Do you think we shouldn't worry about Tails?"

"I think…as much as I want to tell you to put your friends above all else…I don't know if that's what Tails would want. Then again, maybe you should ask him. My Tails is right over there in the med tent, taking care of your Knuckles."

"Alright. I'll ask him."

—–—

Outside, everyone seems to have broken off into smaller groups.

Home Cream happily speaks to visitor Big. "It's very nice to see you again, Mr. Big. Even if it isn't the real you…"

"Wait…I'm not real…?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, that's not what I meant!"

A short distance away, one Rouge closely examines the other, though it really isn't possible to tell them apart. Finally, she says, " _Mine_ are _not_ that big."

The other Rouge seems a bit shocked. "Excuse me?"

"Your ears. They're enormous."

"Look in the mirror sometime, hon. We're identical."

After a short while, Rouge, apparently the home one, poses, "Mind if I ask you a few more questions about your story? I like to know what's going on, I'm sure you're the same way."

"Of course. What do you want to know?"

Up by the edge of the tents, Charmy questions to visitor Cream with confusion, "So how come there isn't another version of _me_ , huh? You have, like, everyone with you, so where's the Chaotix!? Oh no, are we dead!? We're dead, aren't we!?"

"No, no, nothing like that! You and Mr. Vector were working with GUN on the case of the Marauders. You found everyone an important lead that helped them find Mr. Knuckles."

"Oh. Well that's kind of lame. Why didn't we come with you after that?"

"I don't really know… I guess everything just happened kind of fast."

Shadow speaks to Shadow in the shadows on the other side of the canyon floor. One of them, apparently the home Shadow, voices quietly, "You don't seem to respect your Sonic as a leader very much."

The visitor Shadow spits back, "That's because he doesn't deserve my respect. You saw how he lost his temper in there."

"He lost his temper because you prodded him in all the wrong places, at the wrong time. And you knew exactly what you were doing. Seems like you know him pretty well."

"Just because _you_ became _best pals_ with your Sonic, doesn't mean I have to be with mine."

"No one said you had to. Your destiny is yours to decide. But it would look a lot brighter…if you opened up to someone you share something in common with."

"And what, exactly, do I share in common with Sonic?"

"A lot more than you think. A desire to protect the world, for starters. The rest, you can figure out on your own."

"I'm just trying to get home. You can save the flowery friendship speech. I'm beginning to wonder how you could possibly be me, in any universe."

"I would've said the same thing. But anyone can change."

Both versions of Amy stand out in front of the only white tent among the row of dull orange, apparently the designated medical tent. The home Amy comments, "So…you and your Sonic seem…pretty close."

"And you're wondering how I did it?"

"What!? I-I never said–"

"Oh come on, don't try to hide it. I would've asked me the same thing."

"Okay, so…how'd you do it?"

"Well, I sort of…made up a pretend boyfriend to make him jealous."

"Oh. That sounds a little…"

"Scummy?"

"I was going to say 'overboard', but…"

"Yeah, it was…never a very good idea. Sonic was gone for a long time, and when he came back, and I had this plan all ready, he was just being really nice to me all of a sudden, which made me feel even worse about it. I don't really know exactly where we are now. But he's under so much stress right now, the last thing I want is to make it worse for him."

"Well, I at least know what that part's like."

"If you plan on waiting until your war is over…it looks like you might have a long wait ahead of you."

"I'll wait for Sonic as long as it takes."

"If that's true, then I'm sure you'll get him eventually. Your way."

Inside the med tent, the visitor Knuckles lies out on a stretcher, still unconscious, while home Tails carefully wraps bandages around his head.

From two chairs set up near the entrance, the other Knuckles, and the only Shade, sit and watch. Knuckles lets out a sigh. "In that story you told…you left out the part about you. Are you one them? The Nocturnus?"

Shade looks down to the ground. "I was known by the title of Procurator. Lord Ix's most trusted warrior. But I only wanted to return to the world. He wanted to conquer it. I spoke up about it only once. And he tried to kill me because of it. It was Knuckles who saved me." They both look to the unconscious figure in front of them.

"It's hard to wrap my head around. Yesterday, I was the only Echidna. Now I'm sitting in a room with two of them. Except that one of them is me, and the other one is three thousand years old. And they're both from other dimensions. So really, I'm as alone as I ever was."

"I wouldn't pretend to understand the loneliness you must feel. But when I returned to the Nocturne…a fugitive amongst my own people…unwelcome in my own home…I never felt so alone as in that moment."

"You consider that place a home?"

"I never really thought about it before then. But I wasn't like the elders, like Ix. I was born in the Twilight Cage, I had never seen the other world. To me, it was like…a fairy tale. A magical land with grass and trees as far as the eye can see. From the seclusion of the Twilight Cage, it sounded like paradise. So I sought our return to that world as adamantly as any elder. But it was never my home. And it never will be…"

"What do you mean, 'never will be'? Everyone's welcomed you back to their world. You have friends, even someone else like you, someone who understands you. That's what home is really about."

"Sonic and his friends…have been very kind. And in return, I have guided their travels through the Twilight Cage to the best of my abilities. But we aren't in the Twilight Cage anymore. And once we return to their world, once _I_ become the stranger in _their_ world, I won't be of use to them anymore. Remaining allies with me will no longer be to their benefit. And I fear I will be alone."

"If that's what you think about Sonic…then you don't know him very well at all. Maybe that's how things were for you as Nocturnus Procurator, maybe people only spent time around you because of your position of power, but around here, that's not how we do things. And if that Knuckles there is anything like me…spending time with you will be benefit enough for him."

Shade suddenly stands. "That's enough."

Knuckles stands right up beside her. "What's wrong, did I say something?"

"No. You've been nothing but kind. Too kind. And I need you to stop. This whole thing is confusing enough without…you. I just want the madness to end."

Knuckles looks down in shame. "I understand. I'm…sorry."

A few moments later, two Sonics enter the tent. Tails looks up to greet them.

Visitor Sonic quickly begins, "How's he doing, Tails?"

Tails looks down to the unconscious visitor Knuckles. "Luckily, he hasn't sustained any serious injury, but I don't think he'll wake up for at least another few hours. After that, he should be fine…besides a mild headache." He looks up to his own Sonic. "So…everything checks out?"

The Sonics nod to each other. "Yeah. We're all good."

The conscious Knuckles walks up to them. "So what's the plan?"

Visitor Sonic looks to Tails. "That's what we were hoping to ask _you_ about. We think that our Tails was captured by Eggman. And I want to rescue him, but the rest of the team thinks we should focus on defending and repairing the _Cyclone_. So if it was you…what would you want us to do?"

Tails thinks for a moment. "Well…I guess…I wouldn't ask you to risk your only chance at getting home just for me. From that perspective, I might tell you that you'd need me to fix the ship, but…I can probably take care of that. Me me, I mean. In fact, if you're worried about keeping it defended, we can all go."

Visitor Sonic sighs, knowing that he must listen to Tails. But then he looks up. "You'd really do that for us?"

Tails looks to his own Sonic again. "Well…?"

Home Sonic gives a smile with a thumbs-up. "We help people. That's why we're here. We'll do whatever we can to help you guys get home."

—–—

Eggman slowly steps up to the cell bars. "Well…I've just received an interesting report from my new informant. It seems that _you_ aren't who you appear to be."

On the other side, Tails crosses his arms with a smirk. "Did it really take you _that_ long, Eggman? I had it figured out hours ago."

"My, that's quite an attitude. The way I remember, you were sniveling over friendship or some nonsense like that just a few hours ago. Might I remind you that you're still my prisoner?"

"I don't have anything to fear anymore, because I'm not who you thought I was. You might as well just let us go, since we aren't useful to you here."

"Oh, you are still _very_ useful to me. And I intend to make use of that advantage."

Tails looks down to the ground, thinking for several moments. "You may not be the Eggman that I knew…but that doesn't mean you don't have the same good in you that I saw in him. He did some amazing things on the side of good. We wouldn't have been able to save the world without him. You can do the same. You can be good, bring good to the world."

"You almost make all of your running around and jumping on things sound like fun. Almost. But by the sounds of that 'message' you received, your Dr. Eggman didn't turn out to be the goody-goody you make him out to be. Perhaps it was his intention to trap you here in a foreign dimension, out of his way. Clever man. I really ought to thank him."

"Don't you understand? Taking prisoners, making threats, waging war, it doesn't have to be that way."

"You say that as if it's what I want. What I seek, no amount of _good_ can ever bring me."

"You already control this world. What more could you possibly take?"

"Now, now, _you're_ still the prisoner, remember? You're here to further _my_ needs. And from this dimension or not, Sonic won't be able to resist helping out a friendly face. So smile for the camera, would you?"

—–—

Tails crawls backwards out of the access space in the _Cyclone_ , tools in hand. "Well, I have good news and bad news. Good news is, the damage to the engines seems pretty minimal, which means I should be able to get the ship up and running in no time. Bad news is, your…uh… _Dimensional Buffer_ is completely shot. If you had it, you could probably reopen the wormhole you came through, use that to get where you were going before. But you won't be getting much of anywhere without it."

Visitor Sonic looks over to Shade. "You wouldn't happen to have a spare warp belt he can deconstruct, would you?"

Shade looks down and shakes her head. "I only had one, and all of its necessary parts went into the last repairs."

Tails scratches his head. "I could try to build a new one from scratch. But that could take weeks. Maybe longer."

Sonic crosses his arms. "I don't think that's an option."

"Well, that means we'd have to find the components somewhere else."

Rouge poses, "Didn't our Eggman have one of those Buffer thingies just lying around when we first needed it?"

Sonic nods. "Good idea, Rouge. If anyone has those parts, it'll be Eggman."

Amy questions, "But where do we even look? It's not like we can ask Eggman this time."

Knuckles steps in through the open door to the outside. "I think I can help with that. I was scouting out the city before you all got here. Eggman has a vault near the center of the city where he keeps rare and valuable technology. It's right next to the construction facility where he uses that tech to build his most elite robots. One of the reasons why he keeps the city under such heavy guard. But if you get in there, I'll bet you can find the parts you need."

Shade comments, "Getting in there would be the problem, wouldn't it? Genocide City, you called it?"

Shadow scoffs, "Tch. I'm sure it's nothing I can't handle."

Sonic puts on a scowl as he starts to think. "We shouldn't rush into this without a plan."

Before anyone has a chance to propose one, the ship's main viewscreen suddenly lights up. Emperor Eggman stands with his hands folded. "This message is for the Rebellion…and all of their _new friends_."

Knuckles calls outside, "Sonic! I think you'd better come see this!" Home Sonic runs in through the door at the call.

Eggman continues, "Let's keep this simple, shall we? I am currently holding your friends captive. Have a look." The camera pans around, showing Tails behind the cell bars.

Visitor Sonic cries out, "Tails!"

On the screen, Tails shouts, "Sonic, whatever he tells you, don't listen to him! I'm fine, he–" The voice cuts off as the camera turns back to Eggman.

"As you can see, I haven't harmed a hair on his little head. Yet. My demands haven't changed recently. I want Sonic, and the Chaos Emerald. Come to me willingly, and the prisoners go free, unharmed. All of our visitors will be allowed to return home without interference. Refuse, and I make no such promises. We await you in the central tower of Cyber City. And I suggest you make use of that speed of yours." Just as quickly as it began, the message cuts out.

Everyone stands in stunned silence for a moment. Home Sonic seems ready to say something. But visitor Sonic cuts him off. "Don't even think about taking that deal."

"I thought you wanted to help Tails more than anything."

"Oh, I do. And I have a plan that'll get Tails, get the parts, and get us home."

"Let's hear it."

"Eggman's arranged a meeting with _you_. And _I'm_ going to make it."

Amy asks with concern, "You don't plan on giving _yourself_ up, do you?"

"You kidding? I'm Sonic the Hedgehog. 'Giving up' isn't in my vocabulary."

Shadow mutters, "Neither is 'shutting up'."

Sonic continues, "Once Eggman takes us right to our friends, we bust them out."

Rouge interrupts, "Hate to disagree with your plan, Big Blue. But how does that get us the parts?"

"Once we make our move, things are gonna get pretty crazy. Eggman will divert his defenses to keep us from getting out. Shadow, that'll be your chance to take a team into the vault for the parts we need."

Home Sonic thinks for a few moments. "There are a few problems with your plan. Eggman has scanners. If you show up without an Emerald, he'll know something's up."

Visitor Sonic reaches back for something. "I don't think that'll be a problem." He pulls out what can only be a Chaos Emerald. Though it seems like it might be the purple Emerald, it still has an odd pinkish hue. Shadow stares at it from afar.

Sonic examines it closely. "Umm…why is it pink?"

"The Voxai called it a Great Emerald. They imbued it with some sort of psychic energy. It's a long story."

"That should work fine. But Eggman will be expecting you to pull something. If you go in alone, you'll be playing right into his hands."

"Who said anything about going in alone? I'll bring in my own team. Shade, Amy, sound good?" They both nod.

Knuckles steps forward a moment later. "I'll come, too. I've scouted out the place, I can help you stay out of trouble."

Home Sonic steps up beside him. "Are you sure about this, Knuckles?"

Knuckles nods, looking to Shade. "Absolutely. With your Knuckles still out of commission, you might need me."

Before visitor Sonic can object, home Sonic continues with a nod, "There's one other problem with this plan. If all of Eggman's defenses are focused on you four…there's no way you'll make it out of there. What you need is an extra distraction. I think _we_ can take care of that. I'll take my own team in, and the rest can stay here to guard the _Cyclone_."

Visitor Sonic finally objects, "We can't ask all of you to do that. It's one thing standing guard for us here, but there's no way we're letting you put your lives on the line for us like that."

"We promised we'd help you get home. We aren't going back on that now. Besides, I'll take any excuse to stick one to Eggman. Let's you and me show him not to mess with Sonic the Hedgehog. In any dimension."

"…Alright. Fine. Shadow, that will leave your team with Rouge, Cream, and Big."

Rouge immediately complains, "Why do _we_ get stuck babysitting?"

"Hey, Cream can handle herself."

"I was talking about the other one."

Big scratches at his face, completely unaware.

"I'm…sure you'll manage." The visitor leader turns to Shadow. "We're counting on you to get those parts, Shadow."

"And _we're_ counting on _you_ to bring Omega back."

Sonic nods with a look of understanding. "We'll get them _both_ back. No question about it."

—–—

Sonic slams into the black armor-plated Elite Egg Pawn with a powerful spindash, using the momentum to launch himself into the air, only to come back down with an axe kick that knocks its broken wreck to the ground. As he jumps back into formation beside his teammates, Amy leaps out in his place, arcing her hammer into a low blow at the Elite Pawn on the opposite side, destroying it just as quickly. All that remains is a shield-bearing Gold Pawn. Knuckles and Shade move in after it together, as Shade throws a grenade to cover their rushing combo attack. The final slice from her energy blade takes the robot down.

The four take a moment to cheer in victory. But only a moment.

"Now was that really necessary? We _did_ promise to let you in unharmed." In front of the entrance to Eggman's tall central tower stands the transformed, scepter-wielding Egg Robo, Heavy King.

Sonic mutters, "Yuck… It's just like that Egg Bot from the Hazard Vault."

Apparently not hearing him, Heavy King continues, "Of course, we were expecting you to come _alone_."

Sonic crosses his arms. "These are…some of my visitor friends. They're here to make sure the prisoners get out safely. To make sure _you_ don't pull anything." Knuckles glares at Heavy King with recognition. But after a moment, he turns to look at the ground instead.

"…Of course. And I'm here on behalf of my Emperor to ensure the same of _you_. You can start by handing over the Chaos Emerald." Heavy King extends a gloved robotic hand.

Sonic puts on a scowl. "And give up the only thing keeping us from being attacked right now? Not happening. Your scanners can tell you that we brought it. Now _you_ can do the same for us. Take us to the prisoners. I want to see that they're alright with my own eyes."

"…Very well. Follow me." Heavy King turns to enter back into the tower, his long red cape billowing behind him. The four cautiously follow him in.

—–—

Tails holds two severed wires up very close to his face, keeping them carefully apart. "This…should do it…" He touches the tips of the wires together for just a moment. Nothing happens. He tries again. This time, a small arc of electricity sparks between them, starting up multiple whirring mechanical noises. "Yes!" Tails takes a few steps back, allowing Omega to activate.

"SYSTEMS COMING ONLINE—E-123 OMEGA BEGINNING REACTIVATION PROTOCOL." Omega straightens up, and starts to swivel his head around. But it stutters and stops, unable to complete the motion. "ERROR. ERROR. CRITICAL MALFUNCTION."

Tails declares, "Omega, can you hear me? You were damaged in the crash, but I was able to get you back on. I had to use a few parts from some of your other systems, though…"

Omega instead turns his entire torso to face Tails, with slightly more success. "ORANGE FOREST CREATURE HAS TAMPERED WITH MY SYSTEMS WITHOUT PERMISSION. THIS WILL NOT BE PERMITTED." He points a clawed arm directly at him. "COMMENCING IMMEDIATE DESTRUCTION." His arm shudders in place and makes a loud clicking sound. "WEAPONS SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. UNABLE TO DESTROY."

Tails holds up his hands defensively. "That was one of the systems I had to dismantle, it was the only way to get you working again! I promise I can get you all fixed up again once I get some parts and tools, but we're stuck in here right now." Omega lowers his arm, but says nothing. "By now, there's probably a plan to rescue us underway. But I needed to make sure you were up and able to get out by the time they get here. I don't think it would be good for any of us if you had to be _carried_ out."

"EGGMAN ROBOT DETECTED IN THE VICINITY. UNABLE TO IDENTIFY."

"Oh no! Omega, you have to pretend you're still inactive! If they see you, they'll know we're trying to escape!"

"I WILL NOT DEMEAN MYSELF WITH SUCH A COWARDLY TACTIC. I WILL DESTROY ALL EGGMAN ROBOTS."

"How do you plan to do that without any weapons?"

"… …I AM CAPTURED. I CANNOT FIGHT. IT IS EMBARRASSING."

"We'll be out of here in no time. Just trust me."

"UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES, THERE IS NO REASON TO TRUST A MEATBAG. HOWEVER…I WILL COMPLY." The lights in Omega's eyes switch off and he slouches down, just as footsteps can be heard approaching.

Heavy King slowly steps into view, Sonic and the others following behind. "Here they are. Quite unharmed, as promised."

Tails cheers, "Sonic! Uhh…I mean…Sonic…?"

Sonic turns to look at Tails, and, hidden from Heavy King, gives him a wink. "There's no need to worry. You'll be out of there soon."

Tails smiles as he places a hand on the side of Omega's arm. "Thanks for coming. We're ready to be out of here."

Heavy King suddenly slams his scepter into the ground. "There really isn't need for this subterfuge any longer."

Sonic puts on a cautious glare. "What are you talking about?"

"Did you think it wasn't obvious? The Sonic of this dimension has a small scar on the side of his arm. I've traversed enough dimensions to notice such things. _You_ are attempting to fool us by pretending to be someone you're not."

"If you knew that, why'd you bring us up here?"

"It's simple. You are no less valuable to us than any other Sonic. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about your…tainted Emerald. But since _you_ decided to change the terms of our deal, I'll simply capture all of you, and arrange for the exchange of the _correct_ Emerald. With nothing to lose but a measly object, in exchange for all of the prisoners but one, I expect them to be a bit more cooperative."

Knuckles suddenly shouts, "You're wrong! Sonic won't leave _anyone_ behind! So you might as well give it up right now!"

Heavy King turns his head to look at Knuckles. "Ah, yes, I had almost forgotten. The one amongst you who _is_ of this world. It seems that fate likes to draw the two of us together." Knuckles gasps. "Yes, that's right. In truth, I've known of your plan since before you ever arrived here. It makes no difference." He slams his scepter into the ground once again. This time, at his call, two Elite Egg Pawns run in from behind, taking up position on either side of him.

Tails cries, "Sonic, look out!"

Sonic quickly barks into his wrist communicator, "Shadow, we've been found out! Now's your only chance!"

—–—

Rouge drops down into the dark room, and looks around cautiously. Eggman's vault is filled with piles and shelves of machinery of all sizes and in all conditions, much of which is recognizable as pieces of familiar old robots and mechs. Standing out somewhat amidst all of the technology, a dull black gemstone sits on a tall shelf in the far back of the room. Finishing her scanning, Rouge announces, "All clear."

Shadow drops in behind her. "I just got word from Sonic. We don't have much time."

Cream flies in last, carrying Big with her. "Wow…there's so much cool stuff in here."

Rouge complains, "How are we going to find the Buffer in all this _junk_?"

A familiar growling voice answers from the darkness, " _I_ can help with that." As always, the figure stands just on the edge of the shadows, remaining just barely concealed. But with his four-fingered, brown gloved hand, he holds a sack of clanking metal parts out into the light. "I believe _this_ is what you're looking for."

Shadow glares at the figure in the darkness. "Just who are you supposed to be?"

"You and I haven't met. Not in this dimension, anyway. But I know you well enough, Shadow. Well enough to know that you are a reasonable man." Suddenly, he tosses the sack through the air, in an arc for Shadow to catch. "So take it, and leave."

Shadow looks inside the sack. It seems to have everything they need. "Why are you helping us? You work for Eggman, don't you?"

"Ah, very perceptive. You are quite correct. And as I'm sure you understand, we've been having quite the problem dealing with the Rebellion. The last thing we need is a duplicate set of them running around. If you don't get these parts, you don't leave. If you don't leave, our problem remains doubled. So take it, leave, and never return. This will be the only act of kindness you can expect from me."

"Or, we could give you a beating, take the parts anyways, and leave whenever _we_ feel like it."

"My, you _do_ like to argue, don't you? But let's face it. You are short on time, facing an unknown enemy on his own turf. It doesn't make sense. Just go already."

Shadow glares silently for a moment. But finally, he turns his back to leave. "Fine. Let's go."

The rest of the team follows cautiously. But the figure in the darkness calls after them, "And Rouge…" She stops to look back at him. He tips the brim of his brown hat just into the light, as a glint reflects off of his single fang. "…such a pleasure to finally meet you in person. I look forward to doing it again."

Rouge stands surprised for a moment. But Shadow growls, "Just ignore him."

—–—

Sonic delivers a hard spindash into the Elite Pawn on the left, rebounding into the air and maintaining his spin. With perfect timing, Shade jumps up and leaps off of him in the air, dropping down with her leech blades onto the robot, destroying it, as Sonic returns to formation. Not getting a break, he curls back into a ball, along with Amy, and Knuckles grabs each of them in a hand. He spins around to build up momentum, and finally lets go, hurling them each into the remaining Pawn. The first hit knocks it back slightly, and the second destroys it completely.

Heavy King goes on the offensive, raising his scepter fire off an energy sphere that strikes Knuckles directly, knocking him to the ground.

Knuckles climbs back to his feet quickly, and runs in for a direct punch. Amy and Shade each try for a separate attack after him. But none of them seem to do much damage.

Heavy King attacks again, this time with a more powerful move, pounding his scepter into the ground, and shooting out a beam of energy that sweeps across the team's feet, erupting in flames a moment later, and damaging all of them. Just a few moments later, two more Elite Egg Pawns run in to replace the ones that were destroyed.

Sonic grunts, "We can't keep going like this. Shade, time for a change of pace."

At his order, Shade activates an energy blade, turns, and slashes at the lock on the cell bars, letting the gate swing open, and leaving Tails and Omega free to escape.

"Let's get out of here!" The whole team, including the prisoners, prepare to run away.

But Heavy King doesn't look particularly concerned. "Going so soon? A shame. My Emperor was so looking forward to speaking with you."

Knuckles freezes in place. "Eggman? He's here!?"

"Well of course. Just a few floors above us, in fact. I would be happy to take you to him."

Sonic urges, "Knuckles, we have to get out of here!"

Knuckles objects, "This might be my only chance! If I can get to Eggman, I might be able to put an end to this war!"

Shade cautions, "He's trying to goad you. If we stay in here, we might not ever come out again."

Heavy King adds, "Oh, they don't have to come. They're trying to save their own lives. That's fine. But you have your own mission. And a private audience would be better anyways, don't you agree?"

Knuckles closes his eyes. "Shade…there's something I want you to do for me."

"Knuckles…"

"Give us some cover!"

Understanding immediately, Shade hurls a high-tech grenade that detonates in a large cloud of smoke right in Heavy King's face. By the time the smoke clears, the team, Knuckles included, has ran far down the hall, leaping over any obstacles in their way.

The Pawns run after them, trying to get them. But Heavy King doesn't bother. He merely shakes his head. "It seems he isn't so gullible as we thought."

—–—

Home Sonic rolls straight through the ground-mounted laser turret, blasting it into pieces. He stands up in the hazy dawn light just long enough to shout, "Hey, Eggman! You wanted me!? Come and get some!" He curls back into a Spindash for another attack.

Not far behind him, home Omega shreds through another in the long row of turrets with his twin machine guns. "I will destroy all Eggman machines! I am finally free to destroy!"

A short distance away on ground level, Hero the Wolf uses his flamethrowing Wispon to burn down whole squadrons of attacking robots, just as he does best. Espio backs him up, moving swiftly and throwing projectiles with perfect precision, ensuring that no robot can get very close. The group may not fight with the perfect order and organization of visitor Sonic's team, but they certainly seem to be getting the job done.

Another tall cannon falls to Sonic's attack. But on the rooftop of the closest building, another one turns to set its sights on him. Sonic turns just in time to see. "Oh no!"

A spear of energy strikes through the cannon just before it fires, causing it to go up in a fiery explosion. Visitor Shadow lands in a crouch in front of it a moment later. He holds up the sack of parts for Sonic see as the rest of his team comes in behind him.

Sonic gives a thumbs-up. "Nice work! Any word from Sonic?"

Shadow growls, "He's late as usual, I'm sure." With that, he leaps out to find more cannons to destroy, while Cream, Big, and Rouge join the fight on the ground to hold back the ever increasing swarms of robots.

"Not _too_ late, I hope!" Visitor Sonic stands along with Knuckles, Shade, Amy, Tails, and Omega in front of the central tower. They quickly join the waging battle as well, though the damaged Omega seems only able to attack by slashing with his claws. With their added help, every cannon and turret in sight is soon destroyed, leaving only the army of robots which continues to receive greater and greater reinforcements.

All of the heroes stand in a group, surrounded on all sides by dozens, maybe hundreds of robots, with still more coming in. It's become an all-out war. Home Sonic shouts, "We have to break through, find a way out of here!" But there are no escape routes, no way out.

Suddenly, the robots stop attacking, holding their defensive positions. The voice of Eggman echoes through loudspeakers set up throughout the city, declaring, "I think that's enough. You're all outnumbered a hundred to one. You've lost this battle. Let's negotiate the terms of your surrender, shall we? I think you'll find I'm still in a generous mood."

Visitor Sonic clenches a fist and growls. "I should never have let you guys get involved. Now you're about to lose your entire war, and it's my fault."

The other Sonic beside him puts on a smirk as he looks up into the sky. "I wouldn't count us out just yet."

A storm of laser fire suddenly blasts down into one group of robots, blowing a massive hole in their ranks. Everyone looks up to see the damaged but still-flying _Blue Cyclone_ , providing support from the air. Not having turned off the speakers, Eggman can be heard shouting, "What's this!? Shoot them down!"

The voice of Orbot can be faintly heard answering, "All of our defense turrets have been destroyed, sir."

The _Cyclone_ continues to lay down cover fire, until it finally starts to come down for a landing. While it descends, the heroes are easily able to take care of any robots that try to stop it. The moment it touches down, a door on the front opens, and the boarding platform extends. Home Tails waves from the other side. "Everyone, get in!"

Visitor Tails blinks a few times in surprise at seeing himself for the first time. But he quickly shakes it off, and follows everyone else in to his ship. As soon as the door closes behind him, it lifts off once again.

—–—

Home and visitor Tails each hold one side of a large assembled machine part, apparently the complete Dimensional Buffer. Standing next to each other, visitor Tails is noticeably shorter than his home counterpart. He begins, "Ready? One…"

"Two…"

At once, they both finish, "Three!" They push the part into the _Cyclone's_ interior systems, and it locks into place.

Home Tails takes a step back, wiping the sweat off of his forehead. "Man, it's nice being able to work with someone who really knows what they're doing."

"I know, right? I never thought I'd get the chance to work with anyone smarter than Eggman, but…here we are! You've already done great work with the engines."

"What can I say? I wouldn't have built them any better myself."

Visitor Rouge approaches them from behind. "Hey. Hate to interrupt your nerd-bonding time, but I'd like show my _gratitude_ to the hero who saved all our necks today."

Home Tails scratches at the back of his head, blushing just a bit. "Oh, i-it was nothing, no need to–"

Rouge presents an odd-looking curved device, primarily black in color, but covered in several small blue lights. "A little thank you gift, straight from the Twilight Cage."

Tails takes it eagerly. "Wow, is this Nocturnus tech!? It looks so advanced! You're just giving it to me?"

Rouge smirks at his reaction. "Yep. Sonic helped me find a bunch to take back to GUN, but I have way too much of it to keep lugging around. I'm sure they won't miss one more piece of it."

"Wow, thanks so much!" He carefully looks over the device from many different angles. "I wonder what it does…"

Rouge turns around with a wave. "Well, you have fun with that." On her way out, she passes both Omegas, who have their eyes silently locked on each other, as they apparently have been doing for quite some time. As she passes, she comments, "Didn't I ever tell you it's not polite to stare?" She doesn't stay around long enough for an answer.

After a long pause, the less damaged home Omega finally declares, "You were not created by the unit identified as Eggman. Your creator is a different individual. Eradication is not necessary."

"…LOGIC CIRCUITS CONCUR. IDENTIFICATION: ALLY."

Outside, the _Cyclone_ has landed within a wider area of the Emerald Canyon, concealed from view along with the rest of the Rebellion base. Knuckles and Shade stand together just outside the ship. Knuckles lets out a sigh. "I guess…you and the others are going back to the other dimension now, huh?"

Shade looks down to the ground. "It's the closest thing I have left to a home. And besides…my friends are still counting on me."

"I've been thinking…if you were pulled from your dimension into the Twilight Cage…wouldn't that mean that… _this_ dimension's version of the Nocturnus Clan was pulled into another version of the Cage? That _our_ version of you could be trapped out there somewhere?"

"I don't believe that would be true. The Twilight Cage had inhabitants pulled from many different dimensions. That would seem to imply that there is only one. And even so…just because our worlds are similar now, that does not mean we share the same histories. Perhaps, in the history of your world, there never was a Nocturnus Clan. Or perhaps there was, and it was wiped out by Perfect Chaos just as your clan was. Perhaps there _was_ another Shade of this dimension, who lived and died here four thousand years ago. In any case, you shouldn't go looking for something you will not find."

"Yeah…I guess that makes sense." He pauses with a long sigh. "Shade…there's something I want to tell you. Something I've never told anyone before. My name…my real name, in the ancient language of my people…is K'waqochu."

Shade hesitantly translates, "The One with…Sharp Knuckles?"

"You speak the ancient language?"

"It isn't quite so ancient to me. But I am honored that you trust me with such knowledge."

"I hope that…no matter what the future holds for you…you'll always remember that you don't have to hide yourself from the people close to you."

A similar voice interrupts from afar, "So, this is the guy who's supposed to look like me?" Approaching from the white med tent, bandages still wrapped around his head, is the finally conscious visitor Knuckles. He steps right up to home Knuckles, and stares him in the eye. "You don't look so tough."

Home Knuckles immediately takes that as a challenge, raising up a fist. "Oh, you wanna see just how tough I am?"

Shade steps between them. "Both of you, stop it." She looks to her bandaged Knuckles. " _Knuckles_ is the reason we're all still here. The reason _you_ got the medical attention you needed."

Visitor Knuckles still glares over her shoulder at his duplicate. "You're sure he hasn't hurt you?"

"Not at all. In fact, he's been more kind than you ever were."

Visitor Knuckles defensively objects, "Kind? I can be kind!"

Shade steps out of his way. "Really? Then prove it."

After a moment of disgruntled hesitation, the visitor offers his hand out to home Knuckles. "I'm…sorry…for the harsh words."

Home Knuckles takes it, and gives a firm handshake. "I'm glad we have an understanding." Staring past him, off to Shade, he continues a bit more quietly, "I hope you realize how lucky you are." After a moment, he hastily adds, "That you survived the crash, I mean."

Visitor Knuckles looks back at Shade as well. "Yeah. I guess that _was_ pretty lucky."

All three of them look up as visitor Tails calls out from the entryway to the ship, "We're all set! We can go anytime!"

Much movement ensues as members of the _Cyclone_ crew board their ship, while members of the Rebellion exit it. Home Tails gives his duplicate a fist bump on his way out. Meeting right at the base of the boarding platform, the two Sonics firmly shake each other's hand. Home Sonic begins, "It was nice meeting you, Sonic."

"I'd like to return the favor you've done for us. Someday."

"You've given us a pretty big victory today. That's more than we've had in…too long. I'd say you've done plenty."

"Alright. But…if I can ask one more favor…don't forget our story."

Both Sonics give a similar smile. "Not a chance."

With that, the visitor turns away with a wave, preparing to board his ship. Tails comments as he passes the entryway, "Hey, before we go, now would probably be a pretty good time to save your–"

"Tails! How many times do I have to ask you to stop reminding me?"

"Sorry. I'm sure you know what you're doing."

As Shade and Knuckles proceed in behind them, Shade tells him quietly, "Let's go home, K'waqochu."

Knuckles demands in confusion, "What did you just call me!?"

Shade lets out an uncharacteristic giggle as the door closes behind them.

Inside the ship, Tails once again sits down in the pilot's chair. "Alright…here we go. On to the next chapter."

Sonic steps up behind him. "It's been a long time coming. But no matter what that next chapter may be…whether Eggman's there waiting to help us in, or shoot us down…we'll be ready. Right, guys?"

The team behind him cheers, "Right!" Even Shadow gives a nod of total confidence.

"Alright then. Tails…take us in."

—–—

The Rebellion watches as the _Cyclone_ jets off through the air, beyond the lip of the canyon and out of view, in the direction of Cyber City and the wormhole it came from.

Knuckles lets out a sigh. "Eggman was right there. I could've had him. We could've ended this war."

Sonic still stares off at the horizon. "It's not too late. The city's defenses are still in shambles. If we all go back in for another attack, we might still be able to catch him."

Knuckles shakes his head. "I'm sure Eggman's long gone by now. And I doubt he's ever coming back in person. Maybe we could take the city, for a while at least. But it wouldn't do us any good."

"Then there's nothing we can do about it now. We may not win today. We may not win tomorrow. But we'll keep on fighting, just like we always have."

"There's…something else I'm worried about. Heavy King…he knew things about our plan. Things he shouldn't have known."

"What are you saying? How did he know?"

"I'm saying…Sonic…I think someone on our side told him. I think we might be dealing with a traitor."

Rouge stands a fair distance away, just close enough to pick up the words with her impressive hearing. She looks away from them in shame.

 **To be continued…**

* * *

 **Hello, everyone! And thanks for reading! I'd like to give a big thank you to the guest reviewer, Heat Salamance, for their recent reviews to this story! Normally I'd respond to this sort of thing with a PM, but I can't send one to a guest account, and these ones made me much too happy to leave unthanked. I've always written this story with the intention of it being the perfect story for me personally, so having someone else out there who likes it as much as I do really does mean a lot. You've reminded me of all the reasons why I love writing, and I truly do thank you for that. I hope that I can keep putting out stories that you and all of the other readers can enjoy.**

 **While I'm here, I suppose I ought to thank the other guests who have left reviews as well, Char360 and ShadsyStarsWish. Even if I can't respond to you directly, know that your feedback is always appreciated! Same goes to everyone I _have_ responded to, and everyone who's read consistently but has always been too shy to leave a review as well. I appreciate all of you, and you help make this long project all worthwhile.**

 **And lastly, I'd like to wish a very happy 10th Anniversary to Sonic Chronicles! This game may not ever get the sequel it deserves, owing to a certain unfortunate lawsuit, but, in the words of our hero, "No copyright law in the _universe_ is going to stop me!"**


	44. S1 E7: The Bigger They Come

**Do you like Sprite Animations? This episode has a specially made animated preview! Check it out on our official website at SonicChaosProject{dot}wordpress{dot}com! Hope to see you there!**

* * *

 **Emerald Hill Zone**

Rouge looks silently out at the bright full moon as it slowly rises over the ocean, reflecting bright shimmering moonlight over the sprawling green hills. A winding river runs down into a deep canyon a far distance behind her.

"You're early."

Rouge turns to the side with surprise. "Can't you ever just stand where people can see you, like a normal person?"

The figure stands in the shadows of a tall hill, though, in the scattering moonlight, a few vague details can be made out. His brown boots, gloves, and wide-brimmed hat, his bluish-purple fur, and the single large fang on one side of his face. "Well what would be the fun in that?"

Rouge sighs and shakes her head. "I brought it." She takes something out to show him. It's a strange-looking yet familiar device, sleek and black, but covered with soft, bright blue lights. "One stolen extradimensional piece of… _tech_ , as requested."

The figure holds out a four-fingered hand for it. "Well done. Your contribution is appreciated."

She drops it into his hand. "What exactly does Eggman want this thing for, anyway?"

"Would you believe…that it's actually for a friend? He has a certain…vested interest in objects of extradimensional origin."

"You? A friend? No, actually, I don't believe it."

"I like to keep powerful friends. In fact, I have one who's quite looking forward to seeing you again." He turns the device over in his hand, getting a good look at it. "This will do fine. You can go now."

"Why are you toying with them?"

He looks up from the device after a distracted moment. "Hm?"

"You know where the base is. You could send in an army, or bombers, or…you could kill them all. These pieces of junk I give you, the useless bits of information about what they're doing, what does that get you?"

He somewhat overdramatically raises a hand to his chin, as if in deep consideration. "Huh. Maybe I _should_ do that instead." Rouge's eyes go wide as she gasps. "Ha ha! Ha ha hahaha!" He points a finger straight out at her as he laughs hysterically. "You should see the look on your face!" Rouge's surprise turns to a scowl. Once he finally calms down, he answers properly, "I like to play the long game, my dear. And as long as you continue to hold up your end of the bargain, you can rest assured that I will keep up mine."

"You swear?"

"Cross my heart. Now, run along home." He waves her off with his free hand. "Until next time, dearie."

Rouge closes her eyes for a moment. "…Until next time…Nack, was it?"

He chuckles softly. "Please, my mother called me Nack." For the first time, the Weasel steps into the light, revealing his pointed features, his crooked tail, his glaring blue eyes, and the gun holstered on his belt. He gives a devilish smirk, bearing his sharpened, oversized tooth. "You…can call me _Fang_."

* * *

 **Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project**

 **Season 1, Episode 7**

 **The Bigger They Come**

 _Written by ChaosProjectAuthor_

* * *

 _ **Daily log, June 23rd, 0 A.E. Sonic the Hedgehog reporting.**_

 _Spirits have been…a bit higher, since our big win last month. But we haven't gotten anywhere since. Eggman's still nowhere to be found. And now, with an even bigger problem to worry about… I may've gotten Knuckles to promise not to tell anyone, but… If anyone else found out about the mole…there could be a panic. That's the last thing we need today,_

 _Today… Today, of all days… I should be happy today. I should be celebrating._ We _should be celebrating. Sometimes things just don't happen the way you want them to. I just want…just…I…GRRGH!_

 _… … …_

 _I just hope no one remembers._

 _… … …_

 _…Where's the button to delete this stupid recording?_

—–—

 **Emerald Canyon - The Rebellion Base**

The summer sun shines bright through the partially cloudy sky, down into the great chasm. But there are dark storm clouds looming far off in the distance, and the echoing sound of thunder rolls softly over the green hills. Sweating profusely in the heat, Tails runs frantically down the line of the canyon. He finally stops in front of the large mess tent, panting heavily as he clutches at his knees for support. But after a moment to catch his breath, he pushes the entrance flap aside and calls in, "He'll be here… …any second!"

The voice of Knuckles calls back from inside, "Now!? We're not ready yet! Buy us some more time!"

Tails looks back over his shoulder. A short distance away, a slouching Sonic turns away from the main path, ducking into his own personal tent.

"Uhh…actually, I don't think that should be a problem." He turns and runs back the way he came, stopping at Sonic's tent, the one at the head of the row. After a hesitant moment, he raps gently on the wooden post supporting the front of the tent. "Sonic? Aren't you…coming for lunch?"

After a delayed moment, Sonic's voice quietly responds, "I'm…not hungry. You should go."

Tails puts on a confused face for a few moments. "Can I…come in?"

"Umm…" He can be heard sniffling loudly. "…yeah, sure." Tails makes it inside in time to see Sonic moving his hands away from rubbing his eyes. When he looks up, the redness around the edge of his eyes can be seen quite clearly. "Do you need something?"

"Yeah, uhh…I wanted to tell you that… …you remember that piece of Nocturnus tech I was studying? Well, it…sort of disappeared."

"Disappeared? You mean you lost it?"

"Uh, no, I mean…not exactly, I mean…maybe…" Sonic glares at him silently. "I never actually figured out what it was supposed to do. If it was some kind of teleporter or something, I might've accidentally activated it, and it could be who-knows-where by now."

Sonic closes his eyes and sighs. "I'll keep an eye out for it. Is that it?"

Tails seems to consider for a few moments before continuing. "Sonic? You look…"

"Awful, I know."

"I was going to say…distressed. Are you…were you…?"

Sonic has to think briefly about his response. "I just…haven't been sleeping, that's all."

Tails doesn't quite seem to believe him. "Sonic…maybe you should talk to someone about this. If you don't want to tell me, I'm sure Amy would–"

" _Tails!_ "

Tails recoils back at the ferocity of the shout.

Sonic sighs, and rubs at his eyes again. "Tails…I'm sorry. I just…want to be alone right now. Please, just go."

Tails looks down at the ground. "Sonic…"

"I'll be fine tomorrow, Tails. Just…let me be."

Tails thinks for several more moments. Then he suddenly reaches out to grab Sonic's hand, and starts to pull him up. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

Sonic resists with moderate strength. "Tails, I don't want to see any of the others right now."

"Forget the others! Let's go to the beach, just you and me! It's been waiting right down there for us all this time, let's go, just for a day. It'll make you feel better."

Sonic finally rips his hand away. "Tails, no. Leave me alone."

Sorrow wells up in Tails' eyes. He turns away sharply. "Fine." He storms out without looking back.

Only after he's long gone does Sonic realize what he's done. With a groan, he deliberately bangs his forehead down onto the desk, and leaves it there. "Great. Now I'm a jerk, too."

—–—

"Surprise!" Charmy looks around in confusion, realizing that no one else joined in with his shout. Judging by the balloons strung up around the mess tent, the party poppers held in the hands of the waiting crowd, and the hedgehog head-shaped cake set out on the center table, there can only be a surprise party planned. Tails has walked in alone, his head hanging low.

Knuckles runs up to him with concern. "Tails? What's going on, where's Sonic?"

"He's not coming…"

Knuckles doesn't need to think long to understand what's happened. He puts on a scowl, and moves as if to roll up his sleeves. "Oh, he's coming alright."

A minute later, he pounds hard enough on the supporting post of Sonic's tent to risk breaking it. "Sonic! Get out here!"

"Go away, Knuckles."

"I'm not going anywhere. I don't care how moody you're feeling, you already skipped breakfast this morning, and as your _advisor_ , I can't _advise_ starving yourself. You're coming to the mess tent to eat, even if I have to drag you there and shove it down your throat!"

After several moments of audible shuffling around, Sonic finally appears on the other side of the tent entrance, looking perhaps even worse than he did before. "If you're mad about what I said to Tails, you could've just said so."

"Mad? Who's mad? I'm just looking out for our leader. Now, are you coming, or am I carrying you?"

Sonic silently moves past him, shuffling off towards the mess tent. Knuckles takes a moment to shrug, then follows after him. Above them, the dark storm clouds have rolled in, covering the sun, and the sound of thunder looms close.

Sonic sighs as he reaches the entrance to the large tent, preparing himself for the large company. Then he pushes his way inside.

A chorus of voices shouts, "Surprise! Happy Birthday, Sonic!" The room fills with sound as the party poppers are set off, throwing confetti into the air. Charmy's shout comes a moment delayed after the rest. Chatter in the room increases as Tails approaches Sonic with a hopeful smile.

"We all pitched in and put this together. We even managed to make you a cake."

Sonic looks around at the smiling faces in the room with a mix of conflicting emotions. Tears well up in the corners of his eyes.

Knuckles pats him on the back. "Have a seat. Relax. Stop being a leader for one day. You've earned it."

"Guys…I… I…"

Even Shadow stands by the center table with the slightest smirk, indicating the lit candles atop the cake with a hand. "Well? Don't you have a job to do?"

The look on Sonic's face continues to change. "I…" A fresh tear streams out, dripping down the side of his face. "I can't." He suddenly turns around, rushing out through the exit, shouting, "I can't, I can't!"

Tails reaches after him. "Sonic!"

Shadow steps up in front of him. "I think I might know what this is about. I'll talk to him."

—–—

An intense rainstorm pours down into the canyon, as lightning crackles in the air above. Shadow steps slowly through the muddied grass, towards a large familiar tree in the center of the canyon. Sonic is down on his hands and knees at the base of the tree, his shoes and his gloves covered in splattered mud. If he has any tears left, the pouring rain that drips down his face makes it impossible to tell. Until his shoulders heave in a choked sob. Shadow comes to a stop, leaving some distance between them. He stands there in the storm, saying nothing.

Finally, Sonic speaks of his own will. "I know what you're thinking. 'Stop being so pathetic, Sonic. Suck it up and get back to work.'"

After a moment, Shadow responds simply, "That wasn't what I was thinking."

"…It's not just my Birthday, Shadow. It's _his_ , too." He looks up, reaching high to place his muddy hand on the bark of the tree beneath the simple carving of the Moonstone. "A year ago today. That's when it all started. Just a year. But he didn't make it." He lets his hand and his head fall again. An especially loud bout of thunder booms. "He didn't even make it halfway. Six months. He loved this world, he loved his life, and he only had it for _six months_." He pounds a fist into the mud, splashing it everywhere. "It isn't fair."

Shadow doesn't try to console him. The water runs down his face just as it does Sonic's. "You're right. It isn't." Slowly, he steps forward until he stands right beside Sonic. "And it doesn't just make you sad. It makes you angry."

"I'm not cut out to be a leader, Shadow. Not like he was. I can't handle it. It's too much." He digs his fingers into the ground. "It should've been me. Not him. He could've done it. He could've won this war. Everything I can do, he could've done better."

"Not everything." Sonic looks up in surprise and confusion. "I know one thing you can do that no one else can ever be better than you at. Not even me." He finally offers a hand down to help Sonic up.

After a moment of hesitation, Sonic takes the hand, and rises back to his feet. Still he keeps his eyes on the ground. "Some good _that's_ done me. Do you know how long it's been since I've just…ran? As fast as I can go, with nothing, no one to hold me back?"

"No."

"Neither do I. It's been longer than I want to remember."

"Then go."

This once again catches Sonic's attention. "What?"

"Go. Run. As far and as fast as you can. Nothing to hold you back."

"But…why?"

"I didn't come here to tell you that everything's alright. I didn't come here to tell you to get back to work. That's not what you need. And whatever it is that you _do_ need, if you can find it by running away from here…then go. Remind yourself who you are. We'll still be here when you get back."

Sonic looks off beyond the tree, where the canyon widens open, flicking some of the mud and rain free from his hands. "Shadow…"

Shadow turns around, and starts the walk back through the lightening rain towards shelter. "Don't look back. Just run."

Sonic takes on just a hint of a smile as he leans down, preparing a running stance. Then he takes off at a sprint. The mud and rain sploshes beneath his quick feet as he weaves between the trees of the forested area beyond the canyon. He vaults over a fallen log, boosting his speed even higher once his feet are back on the ground. The wind rushes past his ears, and the falling raindrops almost seem to blow around him. The Emerald Hills and the clouds above soon fade away in the distance behind him. Still, it isn't fast enough. He speeds up even more, until objects and landscapes fly past him in a mach speed blur. He closes his eyes, feeling the powerful wind as it blasts over his face. And he never looks back.

—–—

Fang sits back in the shadows as usual, though he now has the confidence to cross his feet up on the surface of the table that sits between himself and the Emperor. "I'm a bit busy, Doc. What'd you call me in for this time?"

Eggman doesn't appear to be amused. "Tell me, Nack, how long has it been since I hired you to clean up the Rebellion problem?"

Fang mimes counting on his fingers, though he's noticeably a finger short. "Hmmm… I'd say…almost five months, now. And it's _Fang_ , by the way."

"And, what exactly have you accomplished in that time?"

"Oh, you mean, besides discovering the location of their base, recruiting one of their deadliest enemies to our side, and gaining an ally and potential saboteur from within their own ranks? In that case, I suppose, nothing."

"I'm not paying you to play around with your new friends! I want results! Yet, you continue to disappoint me."

"I'm still testing her loyalty. Once that's done, we can move on to the next phase of the plan. So, unless you have anything else to yell at me about, I should be getting back to work." He stands up, moving to leave.

"I've called you here to inform you that I've put my _own_ plan in motion. One that I expect to see results from far sooner. And if I do…you can consider your employment terminated."

Fang sits back down just as quickly as he stood up. "Hey, hey, let's not be so hasty, hm? Let's negotiate. Let's hear this plan of yours. Perhaps we may even be able to work our plans together, save time for both of us. And I _may_ be able to speed things along a bit, just for you. What do you say, Doc?"

Eggman scowls at him for several moments. Finally, he answers, "Very well. And it's _Emperor_ , by the way."

—–—

The clouds in the sky have nearly cleared, though the few that remain still cover most of the sinking sun, casting a darkened light over the lush green canopy of vegetation beneath the distant mountain range. Sonic runs across the sparse patches of grass that carpet over the ancient yellow and orange tiles of the Aquatic Ruins. But Sonic never sees this, keeping his eyes closed and letting his senses carry him onwards. And somehow, they seem to guide him perfectly, as he moves flawlessly between crumbling pillars and rotting logs, never losing speed, never losing the focus on his own thoughts, as if being led by some greater force.

Suddenly, his expression shifts with curiosity when the sound beneath his feet changes. He finally opens his eyes, to see nothing but open, murky water beneath him. "Whoa!" Thrown off balance for just an instant, he trips and falls flat onto the surface of the water, skidding across for several moments before sinking underneath.

Dazed and confused as he slowly sinks further and further beneath the surface, he does his best to keep his eyes open, and look around for options. He seems to be surrounded on all sides by ruin walls, much of it covered in the same green foliage seen above. He looks down beneath him. No sign of air. He spins his feet in an attempt to swim, but only ends up flailing helplessly lower. A school of small fish swim past his face. He crosses his arms and puts on a scowl as he watches them go by enviously. _"Great,"_ he thinks. _"So this is how it happens. Sooner than I thought. Drowning in a mud hole in the middle of nowhere, because I never learned to swim. I've always thought it would be more spectacular."_ He finally hits the bottom, where little light shines through. _"I wonder if they'll ever find me… …I hope they don't. At least if I go missing, that's a mystery. A mystery can be inspiring. But this? This is just sad. Sad and alone. He died saving everyone. I couldn't live up to him in life, and I still can't live up to him now."_ He closes his eyes, and a stream of bubbles leaves his nose in an apparent sigh. _"Why'd I even run off in the first place? It was a stupid idea from the beginning. What was I hoping to find out here?"_ He opens his eyes again. And he finds something curious. A piece of metal a short distance in front of his face reflects a glint of light. He slowly reaches out for it, and wraps his hand around it. He tugs on it. It appears to be attached to an almost invisibly thin line that reaches up as far as the eye can see. And then the line tugs back, yanking him away from the ground and upwards through the water.

Moments later, Sonic flops up onto an old wooden pier, sputtering and gasping for breath on his hands and knees.

"Mr. Sonic? That's a funny way to try to catch fish."

Still dripping wet, Sonic looks up to his savior. "Big?" He blinks a few times, wiping the water away from his eyes. "It…it's really you!" He climbs back to his feet, and claps a hand on the overweight Cat's shoulder excitedly. "Good to see you, buddy! You saved my life! Man, we've been so worried about you. Where you been all this time?"

Big looks up at him curiously. "There's no reason to be worried. I've just been out here fishing. This new spot I found is really pretty."

"Big…don't you know what's happening? Don't you know about the war?"

Big looks back down into the murky water. "I don't know about any war."

Sonic closes his eyes. "It's…a long story. Come with me, I can tell you about it on the way back to camp. Everyone'll be so happy to see you, Cream's been asking about you all the time."

"Oh, I'm not ready to go yet, Mr. Sonic. I'm still fishing." With that, he pulls up the fishing rod he used to save Sonic, and casts it back out into the water.

"Well…umm…" Sonic scratches at his head. "…how long do you think it'll be?"

"Until I'm done fishing."

"Yeah, but, I meant…" He groans. "Nevermind." He crosses his arms, and leans back against one of the tall stone pillars to watch him. He raises an eyebrow as he realizes something. "Hey, Big…where's Froggy? You aren't fishing for _him_ , are you?"

"No, of course not. Froggy just went to go visit his friend, Mr. Norton."

"And…you aren't worried?"

"Nope. Mr. Norton likes to make trouble, but they'll be fine as long as they have each other."

"Oh…okay?" He closes his eyes and shakes his head. After a few moments, he lets out a sigh. His foot starts to tap involuntarily.

"You should come fish with me."

"W-what? Me?"

"I have an extra rod for you." He picks up the spare fishing rod that's been lying beside him.

"Uhh…sure. Why not?" Sonic walks back over from his place, and sits down on the pier beside Big. Big hands him the rod, and he takes it somewhat awkwardly. "So I just…?" He holds it up above his head, and flings it out hard. The hook and line soars out in a high arc over the pool of water, finally snagging onto a leafy bush on the other side. "Heh heh. Whoops." He tugs on the rod to get the line back, but it seems to be quite a struggle. He finally gets it free, and reels in a tangle of torn leaves along with the hook.

While Sonic manually removes the leaves to try again, Big comments, "Focus on the water. The water doesn't rush to you. Don't rush the hook to the water."

Sonic seriously contemplates this for a few moments. "Uhh…okay." He swings the rod again, this time casting the line in a much more gentle arc, that lands right in the center of the pool. "I got it!" The hook slowly sinks down out of sight into the murky water. "So…what now?"

"Now, it's in the hands of the fish. You have to wait for them to see."

"Completely out of your hands? What's the point of that?"

Big blinks a few times as he stares down at the water in thought. Right beneath the surface just in front of them, two different colored fish swim around each other in a gentle circle. "Fishing is like life. You can guide the hook, and you can reel in the fish, but if you try to force it to bite, you'll only scare it away."

Sonic's eyes go wide. "Whoah. That's…really smart."

Big puts on a smile. "Wow…no one's ever told me _that_ before."

Sonic rolls his eyes, muttering, "Gee, I wonder why."

"Me too."

Sonic puts a hand over his mouth, refraining from making another comment, but still chuckling through his nose.

Big continues to watch the water as the two fish separate, swimming off out of sight in opposite directions. "Mr. Sonic…why did you come here?"

Sonic looks down to the water as well. "I…don't know if I can really answer that. I felt like I needed to run. So I ran. And I ended up here. I'm glad I ran into you, but…I still don't know why." Sonic looks up suddenly as a tug comes on his line. "Hey, I think I got something!" He starts to pull back, jerking the fishing pole back and forth as he reels it in.

Big advises, "Don't put too much stress on your line. When you're fishing, your line is your life. If it breaks, your life is over."

Sonic reels the fish in closer and closer, until it can be seen struggling just beneath the surface. With one final tug, he pulls the fish up over the water, leaving it flopping around in the air on the end of the line. Its scales are white, interspersed with a few black speckles. "Got it!"

Big cheers for him, "Woo hoo!"

Sonic puts a hand around the fish, stilling its movements. "So…do I just…throw it back now?"

"You don't _have_ to."

"You mean…?" Sonic's free hand suddenly moves to clutch at his stomach, covering a loud growl. His eyes go wide as he states as if realizing for the first time, "I haven't eaten all day."

Big gives another big smile. "I can help with that."

—–—

Two fish roast on spits over the crackling open fire that throws embers up towards the patches of night sky visible above the canopy. Sonic holds his fully-cooked catch on its own spit in front of him. He looks at the fish's eye for a moment, apparently a bit off put by it. His stomach rumbles loudly. And the amber color of the steaming hot caramelized scales looks quite inviting. Without any further hesitation, he tears off a large bite with his teeth. His face contorts in several different ways as he chews and takes in the flavor. "Hm. Fishy." He swallows loudly. Then he goes in for another bite. "Yeah. Not bad. It's no chili dog, but…not bad."

"Huhuhu." With a smile on his face, Big picks up one of the cooking fish for himself.

Sonic stares down at his half-eaten fish for a moment. "What am I doing here?"

Big takes a moment to swallow his first bite, then answers, "You fell into the water, and then you went fishing with me."

"No, I mean…" He closes his eyes and sighs. "Everyone worked so hard…to do something special for me. On their own time, they put something together just to cheer me up. They made me a cake. How'd they even do that!? We don't have an oven. I didn't even think we had sugar. They did all that for me…and I spat in their faces. I yelled at Tails, and Knuckles, and…then I ran out here to go fishing."

"There's nothing wrong with that, Mr. Sonic."

"What? Of course there is! I'm the leader of the Rebellion, I can't just go running off after losing my temper like that. I have…responsibility. And more than that, they're my friends."

"And _you_ are _their_ friend."

"So what? They owe it to me to let me abandon them because I'm feeling hung up on something that happened in the past?"

"If it's what you're feeling right now, why does it matter that it happened in the past?" Sonic doesn't seem to find an immediate answer. "Whenever I feel unhappy, I go fishing. Whenever I don't know why things are the way they are, I go fishing. And whenever I don't know what else I can do, I go fishing. And everything always turns out okay."

Sonic sits in stunned silence for several moments. "Who _are_ you?"

Big's eyes go wide with confusion and surprise. "Uhh…I'm Big, silly."

"No, I meant–"

"That's okay, Mr. Sonic. I forget names too, sometimes."

Sonic shakes his head and sighs. "Nevermind." He takes one final bite out of his fish, leaving mostly bones behind. After he swallows, he continues, "I think I get it. At least a little bit. These last six months have been…tough. Our camp may be pretty big, but…every day it felt smaller and smaller. More and more like a prison. Closing in on me. I really _did_ spend six months in a war prison, once. And I came out of it like it was nothing. I never really figured out how I managed that. There was barely enough room to stretch my legs, let alone run. But I think…I kept running anyways. In my head. I was always thinking, about how I'd get out, what I'd do once I did, and…just about anything else I could. Because as long as I kept running up there, my problems would never catch up with me. So once I got out, once my feet were keeping up with my head again, everything was fine. And I've been doing the same thing this time. I'm always running, up here in my head. Running through strategies, through intelligence, just to keep pace with the pressures of this crazy war. And it's taken its toll. I was feeling trapped, like I couldn't get away. I felt like I needed to run, with my real feet. But that was never it. Because I'm always running, up here, and it's never enough. Because I'm not trying to run away from my problems anymore. But I keep running as if I am. I'm trying to run _ahead_ of this war, but that isn't the way. The only way to break free was to break that mold I made for myself. What I needed…was to realize that I _can_ stop. Stop running. Take life in the way it is."

"Fishing is like life."

"That's right. It is. Thanks for teaching me that, Big."

"Huhuhu."

"If I can just start fighting this war one day at a time…I can stop running. And I can stop running from my other problems too." He sighs. "That's what he was always trying to teach me. To be aware of the present moment above all else, instead of always rushing ahead. If I'd just listened to what he told me, instead of wishing he were here to tell me more…"

"He would've wanted you to keep doing the best you can, Mr. Sonic."

"Yeah. He would. And from now on, I'm going to do him proud. That's a promise." Sonic's eyes suddenly narrow as he glances at Big suspiciously. "Hey, wait a minute…"

Big is immediately able to answer, "I met Mr. Chaos once. He was really nice. And he didn't know what to do, just like you, Mr. Sonic."

Sonic smiles. "Of course. How could I forget?" He thinks a while longer on that, as he stares into the glow of the slowly dimming fire. "Even he couldn't always know what the future holds. And even when he did, he would always act on the moment anyways. He chose to fight for all the things he cared about. And I'll keep doing the same. But what about you, Big?" Sonic finally rises to his feet, and offers his hand out to Big. "Will you fight for the Rebellion?"

Big smiles. "Okey-dokey. I like helping my friends." He takes Sonic's hand, and nearly pulls him back to the ground with his brute strength as he climbs to his feet.

Another voice declares, "Thy touching display doth warm my mechanical heart." Mounted atop her supercharged Motobug steed, the purple armor-plated Heavy Rider watches from the top of a higher ruin platform. "Thou shalt come with me, or thy end willst be swift. That wouldst be a fitting mercy."

Big stares up at Heavy Rider blankly, and she seems to look back down at him. Sonic takes a few steps forward, crossing his arms as he takes in his opponent. "You must be Heavy Rider. I've heard a lot about you. Like how Vector squashed that bug of yours. I'm surprised it was worth putting back together."

"Shut thy mouth, knave! Thou insultst Jimmy, swiftest steed in all the land!"

"You picked a _bad_ day to mess with me, lady. So let's get two things straight. One, only one person gets away with calling me 'knave', and you aren't him. And two, nothing's faster than Sonic the Hedgehog. So catch me if you can." With a mocking two-fingered salute, he takes off running.

Rider's engine revs loudly as she takes off after him, continuing to ride along the higher path beside him, making small jumps from platform to platform as necessary. Even at high speed, she seems to keep up with him.

Sonic doesn't seem too concerned, calling up as he runs, "Well how do you expect to end me when I'm down here and you're all the way up there?"

"I expect to end thee easily." She swings her massive flail, sending it smashing onto the top of a tall totem pole that rises all the way up from Sonic's level to hers, causing a dart to be spit out of one of the totem pole's faces, straight towards him.

Sonic ducks down and covers his head just in time for the dart to sail just inches over his head, much too close for comfort. But Heavy Rider doesn't relent, striking every totem pole she passes, sending dart after dart at him. Shockingly, Sonic closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. And this time, as he rolls and leaps and dodges using only his senses to guide him, he flawlessly avoids every projectile. He never slips, he never becomes distracted. Finally, he makes a sudden, sharp right turn, calling back, "You'll have to try harder than that!"

Jimmy's wheel skids across the grass as Heavy Rider matches Sonic's turn, driving to leap over the edge of the high platform, and landing hard right on Sonic's tail. She picks up speed as she swings her flail around over her head, trying to strike him directly with it. But Sonic ducks into a roll to slip underneath, then hops up into a solid strike at her side. As she wobbles off balance, he makes another hard right turn, now running back the way he came in a loop around the large pool of water.

Big watches silently as the other two rush past him, beginning the second lap. Heavy Rider swerves away from Sonic to drive up a ramp, launching back up onto the higher platform. She begins the process of knocking darts out of the totem poles once again. As they get farther away, Big shrugs, and walks slowly back over to the wooden pier, where he sits down and picks his fishing pole back up.

As Sonic makes the first turn again, Heavy Rider takes a longer route around, remaining on the higher path. Sonic taunts, "What's the matter? Afraid to come down and face me? Aren't knights supposed to fight with honor?"

"There exists no dishonor in slaying a rat such as thee!" On the next turn, Rider manages to preempt Sonic, driving over the edge with the intent to smash him from above.

Sonic smirks, and skids to a dead stop. Heavy Rider completely overshoots him, landing a fair distance away, and continuing on in a wide, drifting turn that leaves skid marks on the ground, before coming to a stop as well. They stare each other down for several moments. Then Rider revs her engine again. Her Motobug's wheel peels out on the ground, flinging up smoke and grass. And in that moment, a small metal hook latches onto the back of the robotic steed. It finally takes off along the ground, then jerks to a stop a moment later, flinging the Rider off and onto the ground.

With a loud "Hu!" Big swings his fishing pole to the side, pulling the attached Motobug off the ground, and sending it splashing into the pool of water.

Heavy Rider climbs back to her feet, and looks to the rippling water with shock. "Jimmy! Not again!" Without hesitation, she leaps into the water after it.

Sonic runs past them, back up to Big. "Nice shot, buddy. Now let's get out of here before they swim back out."

Big climbs back up to his feet. "Okey-dokey."

—–—

The sun has risen over the Emerald Canyon. Sonic stops to take a deep breath as he reaches the entrance to the large mess tent, preparing himself in a different way. Then he moves inside, and greets with a smile and a wave, "Surprise. I'm back."

"Sonic!" Tails, Knuckles, and Shadow are the only ones who have remained in the room.

"And I brought another friend." Sonic indicates the entrance, where Big comes through behind him.

"Hello."

The other three wave hello, but none of them know him well enough to be too excited. Tails is certainly much more concerned for Sonic. "So…are you…?"

Sonic nods with a smile. "Yeah. I'm doing alright."

Knuckles declares, "Then what're we waiting for!? Let's get this party back on!"

Tails happily adds, "I'll go round up the others!" He runs out of the room.

Shadow looks to Sonic. "What happened to you out there?"

Sonic looks over to Big. "I found exactly what I needed. I learned how to stop running." He suddenly looks over to Knuckles, who is using a lighter to relight the cake's candles. "Hey, wait a minute…" He points to the bottom spike on the shape that represents his head, which appears to be completely absent. "There's a slice missing!"

Shadow immediately answers, " _Knuckles_ couldn't help himself."

Knuckles objects, "I already told you, it wasn't me!"

"We were the only three people in the room, Knuckles. Tails fell asleep, and I was meditating. So I guess it must have been a _ghost_ that snuck past you in the middle of the night, just to steal a slice of Sonic's Birthday cake?"

Sonic is completely unable to contain his sudden outburst of laughter. He doubles over as he laughs, completely overcome by it. Shadow and Knuckles glance at each other in slight confusion. Finally, Knuckles asks, "Uhh…what's so funny?"

Sonic finally manages to calm down, and looks up with a smile. "I could've ran anywhere…stopped anywhere. But I ended up exactly where I needed to be. Almost like there _was_ a spirit guiding me there. Compared to that…him stopping for a slice of cake doesn't sound so crazy."

Shadow cracks a smile. Remembering the last year's party, Knuckles starts to laugh as well. He wipes at the corner of his mouth unconsciously, as if with something to hide.

"Mr. Big!" Cream comes running in through the entrance, and wraps her small arms as far as she can around her large friend.

"Hello, Miss Cream."

The rest of the camp quickly comes filing after her, giving their hellos and their Happy Birthdays. Tails comes in last, confirming, "That's everyone."

Shadow gestures towards the cake once again. "Well then…let's pick things up where we left off. Sonic?"

Sonic walks up to the table, and leans down to put his face up close to the candles. He stares at them for a moment, taking notice for the first time. There are seven of them, all of different colors, arranged in the shape of an Emerald. He looks up to Shadow questioningly. Shadow nods in affirmation. Sonic looks back to the candles with a smile.

Tails comments, "Don't forget to make a wish."

Sonic nods, and closes his eyes. Then he takes a deep breath in, and blows out each of the candles in one breath.

Knuckles immediately pesters, "So what'd you wish for?"

"You know I can't tell you that, Knuckles."

"Can't you? Because if you didn't wish for an end to this war, then I think we need to have a talk."

"That _would've_ been a good choice, wouldn't it? But no. Keep guessing."

As the level of chatter in the room increases, Big watches from the back of the room. He puts on an unusual smile, one that is almost eerily malicious, an odd sight on his face. He speaks with an oddly sophisticated voice, "And so…the curtain rises on a new show."

—–—

"See, Doctor?" Fang leans back, and crosses his legs up on the table once again. "Now, your plan is in, _and_ I can proceed with the next phase of _my_ plan all the sooner."

"This next phase of yours…when exactly does it begin?"

"Well, as soon as possible. Some arrangements must be made first, of course."

"What sort of arrangements?"

"Only one, really. But it must wait for the right moment. We're going to expose our own mole."

 **To be continued…**


End file.
